» Home > Leverage points >

Category Archives: Costs

Why Do Non-Drivers Say No to Cars?

Sunday, March 24th, 2013 | warai03p | No Comments

By Beck Eleven and Diana Dekker at Stuff

Non-drivers 1

Nearly 90,000 nervous people sat their learner licence tests last year, and close to 58,000 of them passed. Most were under 30 and most of them probably couldn’t wait to get legally behind the wheel.

Getting a driver’s licence is a rite of passage for young people, even for a sprinkling of people in their 40s or older (134 people aged 65 and over sat the test in the past year). But not for some. Some pass their test early, drive for a bit, then stow their licences in a drawer, deciding that driving is not for them. Others never even dare to try. They feel they are too timid, too environmentally conscious, too old or too dreamy to be in charge of a car.

Here are a some of their stories: Continued at original site

Easing Off the Gas

Tuesday, April 17th, 2012 | Editor | No Comments

Original article by Tom Murphy, at Do the Math

Another great article from Tom Murphy’s brilliant blog, “Do the Math” where he uses critical quantitative thinking to approach our energy challenges and policies. Here he  discusses adaptations that will have an immediate impact on transportation and liquid fuels.

– Editor

“Again, I come to the conclusion that one thing we can do—totally under our own control—is to reduce our demand of liquid fuels faster than the naturally-imposed decline rate. And again, I look for factor-of-two level solutions, rather than piddly few-percent window-dressing. Let’s kick this problem in the teeth!”…

Continued at original site

Transportation and the New Generation: Why Young People Are Driving Less and What It Means for Transportation Policy

Thursday, April 5th, 2012 | Editor | No Comments

Original article by Benjamin Davis and Tony Dutzik, Frontier Group; Phineas Baxandall, U.S. PIRG Education Fund

“America has long created transportation policy under the assumption that driving will continue to increase at a rapid and steady rate. The changing transportation preferences of young people – and Americans overall – throw that assumption into doubt. Policy-makers and the public need to be aware that America’s current transportation policy – dominated by road building – is fundamentally out-of-step with the transportation patterns and expressed preferences of growing numbers of Americans. It is time for policy-makers to consider the implication of changes in driving habits for the nation’s transportation infrastructure decisions and funding practices, and consider a new vision for transportation policy that reflects the needs of 21st century America.”

Continued at original site

Going Bussed: Economy And Tuition Fees Drive The Young Away From The Car

Monday, February 27th, 2012 | warai03p | No Comments

, Tom Midlane and James Brilliant, guardian.co.uk

    Passengers board a National Express bus at Victoria coach station

    Sales of coach and train discount cards surge as driving becomes a minority pursuit among cash-strapped students. Photograph: Micha Theiner/City AM/Rex Features

A generation of students facing higher tuition fees and lower job prospects appears to be embracing the mixed joys of budget travel in rising numbers – with the teenage dream of passing the test and driving a car now an increasingly unaffordable, minority pursuit.

Operators report that the traditional staples of budget travel, the young person’s rail and coach cards, are being purchased in record numbers.

National Express, Britain’s largest coach operator, reported a surge in sales of coach and regional bus discount cards last year, with 36% more being sold year on year.

Continued at original site