The EcoNews Report
When Driving is Not an Option
Roughly a third of people don’t drive. That might seem like a lot but you probably know non-drivers in your own life. Some people can’t, either because they have some kind of disease or disability that makes driving impossible. Some people can’t because they are too young or too old to safely operate a vehicle. Some people can’t afford to drive, as car ownership is stupidly expensive (the average cost of owning a car is over $1,000 a month). Some people choose not to drive or drive as little as possible, as cars have a large environmental impact, from greenhouse gas emissions to fish-killing toxins in tires. Anna Zivarts, author of When Driving Is Not an Option: Steering Away from Car Dependency (Island Press, 2024) and founder of the Week Without Driving, joins hosts Colin Fiske of the CRTP and Tom Wheeler of EPIC on the show to talk about how we can meet the transportation needs of non-drivers. Anna is also giving a free public talk on June 17th at 7pm at the Arcata D Street Neighborhood Center. The talk will cover the nondrivers in every community, the importance of meeting the transportation needs of nondrivers, how communities can work better for nondrivers (and everyone else), and valuing the expertise of nondrivers. Want to hear more? Listen to Arcata City Councilmember Sarah Schaefer and others discuss their attempts to go carless during the 2024 Week Without Driving.
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