Dansportation: I'm a huge hippy

The Stranger formally declared a War on Cars this week. I really want to be the first soldier to enlist, but I’m too much of a peace and love flower child—I just can’t*.

Rather than accepting the Seattle Times’ “war on cars” frame, we need to do the transportation equivalent of some hippy putting a flower in the barrel of a national guardsman’s gun. Instead of getting angry and stooping to the misguidedly enraged driver’s level, let’s show them some unconditional love. Most people drive, and waging a political war on cars would be a little like being a young protestor throwing rocks at tanks--I'm sure it feels good, but it ain't gonna work.

Don’t get me wrong—I totally get the Strangers’ outrage. I am at my most-foul mouthed whenever a car pulls some wack ish too near my bike**. And the many recent cycling deaths remind me that my cycling attitude of “these motorized f*ckers are trying to kill me” is hyperbole, but probably has at least a grain of truth to it. Plus, it is absolutely absurd—maddeningly absurd—to think that building infrastructure that offers people cheaper, healthier and more fun transportation options and in fact makes all road users safer in any way constitutes a “war on cars.” The people who get around armored in two-tons of steel, on whom more than 85% of supposedly anti-car Seattle’s transportation money is spent, are not the victims, and it takes a really profound sense of entitlement to think that they are.

But the angry rhetoric isn’t going to help us win--it's only going to reinforce a false us vs. them attitude. The morning the Stranger came out, I got a text from a car-bound friend that read “War on cars in the Stranger? Well bring it, I’m rootin for the cars.” Yeah, my friend is a gigantic jackass, but that’s the type of reaction that this rhetoric can produce. We need to win people over—and guilt, casting holier-than-thou aspersions, and making common sense transportation policy into a culture war won’t do that no matter how right we are.***

Here’s what I would say instead: I bicycle because it’s fun, it’s less frustrating than sitting in traffic and looking for parking, and I get a great workout simply getting from place to place on a daily basis. Biking is cheaper than driving, too. I look better and feel better when I bicycle regularly--and I get the added bonus of getting out in this beautifully crisp fall air. Quite simply, I’m hooked. That’s why I bike. You should give it a serious try too.

Bicycles safety increases the more cyclists there are on the road, and our real task is to convince people to give bicycling a shot rather than get all  up and start a culture war with the people we’re trying to convince.

Let’s be courteous on the road even when drivers aren’t—and wave and thank people who drive well. And when you talk about transportation, talk about how much you love biking, bussing or walking, and why it makes your life better. Talk about enabling transportation choices. And talk about safety for everyone. That’s how we’re going to get people on our side.

And if that doesn’t work, we can resort to growing our hair out, flashing peace signs at drivers and using the word “groovy” a lot.

* The curmudgeon in me really wants to get a “I am the war on cars” t-shirt to wear when I’m biking, though.

** Fortunately, most drivers have their windows up and can’t hear me—this is probably good for my health.

*** Plus, did I mention that I’d be a huge hypocrite if I started spouting “cars are evil” rhetoric—I drive decently often for work, or when biking and bussing simply won’t work for what I need to do. And I am definitely not alone amongst bikers and bussers in this.