September 22, 2010 Liz Borkowski, MPH 5Comment

September 22nd is World Car-Free Day, when people everywhere are encouraged to get out of their cars and try different modes of getting around. The Metro DC Car-Free Day is also encouraging people to try “Car-Lite” options like carpooling, or to eliminate the need for a trip to the office by working from home. They’re asking people to pledge to “eliminate or reduce” their driving today – and the form does ask whether people normally drive or not, so I hope they’ll report both numbers.

I thought the bus was a little more crowded than usual this morning (though I also got to the stop a few minutes later than usual), and the traffic seemed to be on the lighter side. Has anyone noticed a difference in traffic patterns where you live?

5 thoughts on “Happy Car-Free Day!

  1. I have to drive to work and on Saturdays I usually have errands to run but I try not to drive on Sundays unless I absolutely have to. Most Sundays I don’t leave home. Seems like a once a week car-free day is better than a one off, or even an annual, event. It isn’t much of an imposition for me and I don’t believe it would be for most people.

  2. I love my car. Actually cars; I own four cars and a truck.

    I do wish all you car haters would take yourselves off the road and into some other form of transportation.

    Most of you can’t drive worth a damn and just slow me down anyway.

    I’d even agree to partially subsidize your anti-car schemes as long as it left more space on the road, and gas at the pumps, for me and my many beautiful and empowering automotive conveyances.

    What I won’t agree to is punitive measures motivated by irrational, emotional disdain for the automobile.

    Watch for my 1973 Ford F-100 with a honking 460 cubic inch, un-catalytic converter-ed, engine as I blow past you on your bicycle. It’ll be the one with the “I heart CO2” bumper sticker.

  3. Lance, it’s a big leap from “try to make some of your trips by a means other than solo driving” to “car hating.” It doesn’t matter how we feel about cars emotionally; if we all drove alone every place we had to go, there would be constant gridlock, among other problems.

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