Undriving and Undriver Licensing

2 Comments so far

1. fulvio October 27th, 2007 1:24 pm

   The article quotes King Cushman, former regional-strategy adviser for the Puget Sound Regional Council:

   “I kind of have to think things are going to change — not because government is smart, but because of market forces,” he said.

   And toward the end:
   Cushman, who studied transportation here for more than 30 years before retiring in July, said he finds a certain irony in what’s transpired, noting that the region’s snail-like pace in making transportation decisions may actually have helped ease congestion.

   “Sometimes, in spite of ourselves, we do the right thing.”

   I find it interesting to see the lengths people like Cushman go to deny a positive role played by government, and to hang on to the magic belief in the “invisible hand of the market”. We invented governments in order to channel our positive impulses toward higher human potential, whereas the market is driven by the basest instincts, and furthermore, the “invisible hand” never picks up the check.

   Another observation: based on the reader feedback, one would think that the readers come from either one of two completely different places - there are those who commute by bus, saving money, stress, greenhouse gases, and love it, and then there are those who find that whenever they try riding on public transportation instead of driving their commute time increases by a factor of 2, 3 or even 5 or 6. In fact, this is a pretty accurate representation of the reality of our topography and of how the transit network is set up. If your main commute takes place along a north-south corridor (especially if one of your commute endpoints is downtown Seattle), you are in luck. If you need to go along an east-west direction, or - heaven forbid - diagonally, forget it. I am lucky: riding a bus between Ballard and downtown is really easy. But about every six months I have an appointment with my dentist, whose office is on the eastside. That’s when I get to experience the pain of 2-3 hour bus trips, which have not improved at all over the last few years.

   Several of the Seattle Times readers who commented on the article said they either moved home to a more convenient location, or changed jobs, or both, and now enjoy the benefits of undriving. It seems to me that “bus-friendliness” should become a much more significant factor in selecting a prospective house, apartment, condo, or workplace. There is already a “Walk Score” (see http://www.walkscore.com), which, not surprisingly, is aimed at “homebuyers, renters, and real estate agents”. We need a “Bus Score”!

2. cecily flavell November 30th, 2007 7:42 pm

   Whilst I applaud and appreciate the new ‘Undriving push’ and see daily that it is working… I also would like to request help… from people who live in condos and homes and don’t park their cars in their parking spots, due to using them as storage, or folks who park on the residential streets, to please park carefully and as close to others as possible trying to leave ‘open spots’ for visitors, care workers or family to be able to park. As Caregivers nurses and family, we are finding it impossible to park near homes with the elderly, so are the families… We used to have plenty of space… now cars are parked 24/7 and we are having to decline services.. As often we are parking two blocks away and carrying heavy cases. Also often we need to come and go to the same house during the day.. for doctor visits food runs or trucks delivering Oxygen.. This is most unfortunate..Actually we need painted zones now for ‘help spaces’ for essential services.. If you know you have elders or handicapped living next to or near you.. please be aware of their needs and ours…see if you can help. Perhaps with your Block Watch groups you can find an ‘open space’ within your block and mark it for us ???? With Sincere Thanks… Cecily Flavell Home Care worker..

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