We all think we're in traffic, not that we are traffic.

[phantom power]

The Price Of Free

Congestion is a negative externality. I'm not particularly concerned with the fact that if I put my car on the road I'm going to make life that much worse for other drivers on the road. We all think we're in traffic, not that we are traffic. Sometimes you can actually make everybody worse off if something is too cheap.

[KurtNYC]

1. I get the idea behind that pull quote but most of us know.

Isn't that part of what the green movement is about? There is backlash against suburban sprawl. New Urbanism started prior to 1992 and was driven largely by young adults leaving the suburbs for big cities. People widely praise mass transit and aknowlege cities that have good system: Boston, NY, Montreal, Chicago On the other hand Los Angeles is famous for not having effective mass transit and having spontaneous traffic jams that can happen any time of day; not just rush hour but 10pm, 2pm any time.

Faster, more productive commute = mass transit.

Most of us know that "we are the traffic" if we choose to be.

[KT2000]

2. that says a lot!

Something I wish someone would study is the mental state of people when they are driving, especially in populated areas.
When I go to the big city (Seattle) I am amazed at the manic behavior of many drivers.
I see impatience, anxiety, anger, fury, aggressive driving that puts many people at risk. All this basically because there are other cars on the road.
What are these people like when they get to their destination? Do they change into decent human beings?