[dolanbaker]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15598511

Return to Levittown: America's first suburb reaches 60

Levittown's early history in the post-World War II boom (Video by the BBC's David Botti)
Almost 60 years ago, a planned community embodied the hopes and prosperity of America. Now, it represents a more realistic picture of the American experience. The BBC investigates Levittown, Pennsylvania, as part of a year-long series.

Well it was a good idea at the time!
In reality we now need a similar "dream" for urban living in the future.

[dorlomin]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-15598511

Return to Levittown: America's first suburb reaches 60

Levittown's early history in the post-World War II boom (Video by the BBC's David Botti)
Almost 60 years ago, a planned community embodied the hopes and prosperity of America. Now, it represents a more realistic picture of the American experience. The BBC investigates Levittown, Pennsylvania, as part of a year-long series.

Well it was a good idea at the time!
In reality we now need a similar "dream" for urban living in the future.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_city_movement

All we need to do is dust of the plans for how to build a country with minimal transport 'friction'. It means moving the work to the people, or building rail infrastructure to get them to the workplaces at relative low energy costs.

The thing is though such infrascture requires a change in social attitude, a willingness of relatively well off people to live close to lower social groups. The managers and engineers need to live close to the labourers and mechanics. Everyone needs to live half an hours cycle from the factory. That will take some getting used to in some countries where physical space has been used a means of segrigating the society decoupling the social problems of different income groups.

It also means the surrender of personal space when transporting between locations as we have to addopt more public transport and less compartmentalised ICU personal bubbles. You can see why peak oil means the end of the world to some people. They would rather mad max than sitting on a bus with the hoi polloi.

[dolanbaker]

It also means the surrender of personal space when transporting between locations as we have to addopt more public transport and less compartmentalised ICU personal bubbles. You can see why peak oil means the end of the world to some people. They would rather mad max than sitting on a bus with the hoi polloi.

Fortunately, many young people have to adapt to that type of lifestyle when they first leave home to study in another town.
All their creature comforts are stripped away and they adapt to living in close proximity with others. Their willingness to continue with such a lifestyle would be easy to facilitate if such projects were happening when they finish their studies.

[Keith_McClary]

Trapped By Car Dependence: Stories From Commute-Battered Americans

Meet Darren Flenoy, a Bay Area security guard who lives 40 miles from work. Gas costs him about $500 a month. His car payment is another $500. On top of that, he spends $80 per month on insurance and $180 on tolls.
In total, Darren’s commute costs him half of his monthly income. He must work seven days a week to make ends meet.

Then there’s Ro, a 23-year-old recent college graduate who lives with her parents in Vallejo, California. To reach her job in San Francisco, she must commute 20 miles in her 1994 Nissan Pathfinder to a BART station.

Gas costs her $20 to $30 dollars per day. Sometimes in order to make ends meet, she skips lunch.

There are thousands — millions — of Americans with stories just like theirs.

[dolanbaker]

Trapped By Car Dependence: Stories From Commute-Battered Americans

Meet Darren Flenoy, a Bay Area security guard who lives 40 miles from work. Gas costs him about $500 a month. His car payment is another $500. On top of that, he spends $80 per month on insurance and $180 on tolls.
In total, Darren’s commute costs him half of his monthly income. He must work seven days a week to make ends meet.

Then there’s Ro, a 23-year-old recent college graduate who lives with her parents in Vallejo, California. To reach her job in San Francisco, she must commute 20 miles in her 1994 Nissan Pathfinder to a BART station.

Gas costs her $20 to $30 dollars per day. Sometimes in order to make ends meet, she skips lunch.

There are thousands — millions — of Americans with stories just like theirs.

She should get a smaller car! (I had to google it!)

[Outcast_Searcher]

I had a friend who moved to a big city to get a good computer programming job. He moved into an apartment within walking distance (across the street actually), so he didn't even need to BUY a car.

Saved a TON of money. Took public transport or cabs in the city when needed. Rented a car when he had to leave town.

There ARE alternatives where the infrastructure is there.

Regardless, the idea that some individual HAS to take a CHEVY SUBURBAN on a long commute daily, and then whines about the cost is so ludicrous it is beneath contempt.

Let me guess. The left will want a new "social program" to GIVE them money for another car since they choose to live a long way from work...

Yeah, I'm sure that would be perfectly logical to the clowns on MSNBC, even while they scream that no oil should be drilled for in the gulf -- since we can get all our energy from Solar and Unicorn power for "free".

[Pops]

$10/day will get you on Baylink Ferry in Vallejo and includes all Vallejo busses, $2/day more gets you on all SF transit except cable cars.

People are married to those cars but the honeymoon is over.

[dorlomin]

FWIW I scraped my car at the begining of October, I have been moving away from a car dependency for a few years and figured it was seriously no longer worth the money. If I am headed back up to Scotland I can book a train early and it costs less the petrol would have let alone the insurance and tax. Anything under 150 miles and its the bike. That just costs a few Snickers, a big hearty pasta meal about half way and some sugar drinks.

I guess its counter the majority of peak oil thinking but I have specifically moved close into the city so its all about my bike and the occasional bit of public transport. I have also watched cycle culture explode here in London.

[Keith_McClary]

Let me guess. The left will want a new "social program" to GIVE them money for another car since they choose to live a long way from work...

There was "Cash for Clunkers", but that cash went to people who could afford a new car, resulting in late model cars being trashed. That dried up the supply of good used cars, leaving the worst polluting gas guzzlers on the road.

[basil_hayden]

In the meatime, we're turning all of our rail lines into hiking trails, how stupid does it get?