The Oil Drum

The tide is now shifting against the automobile in the urban environment. Not because drivers are finally willing to sacrifice their automobile for the public good, but because the public is finally realizing that they have been sacrificing their lives and the quality of their lives for an illusory economic benefit.

Well stated, Peakguy. Policy decisions? Here are a few, in no particular order.

Toll the East River Bridges.

Build the Second Avenue Subway.

Build the No. 7-line extension into the far west side.

Congestion Price the [expletive deleted] out of motorists who insist on driving through the packed CBD.

Require bicycle parking in buildings as most places currently mandate a minimum number of automobile parking spots.

Take some lanes away from cars for Bus Rapid Transit or, better yet, Light Rail.

Restore Penn Station.

Introduce mandatory pay-at-the-pump auto insurance to increase the cost of individual car trips without increasing one's overall insurance bill.

Convince the American people to stop obsessing over NASCAR and start yachting.

Make motorists pay for the greenhouse gas emissions they create by raising the gas tax to fund remediation efforts.

Zone for high density development along transit corridors.

Amend zoning laws to require a maximum number of parking spaces per dwelling, instead of the current minimum.

Extend the Long Island Rail Road into Grand Central Terminal and the Fulton Street complex in Downtown Manhattan, and bring Metro-North trains into Penn.

Charge for curbside parking something close to what it is worth.

Add a passenger rail tunnel under the Hudson River.

Curse the day that a young Robert Moses decided to go into urban planning.

Ban cars from Central Park.

Build the cross-harbor rail freight tunnel.

For the love of God, invest in Amtrak. Reduce highway subsidies.