Peak Automobile?
2nd August 2015
Ever since some alarmist came up with the economically nonsensical term peak oil, we’ve been inundated with peak this, that, and the other thing. There’s peak helium. How about peak phosphorus?
More recently, the term has been twisted from a supply issue to a demand issue, such as peak smart phone. And now, peak car. Yet, reading about peak car, the Antiplanner can’t help but feeling that this is neither a supply nor a demand issue but more wishful thinking on the part of city officials who are doing their best to create auto-hostile environments.
Millennials don’t drive? It turns out that’s not true, just as it isn’t true that Millennials avoid the suburbs.
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Never forget that mobility is an economic activity that generates economic benefits, so reducing mobility reduces those benefits. Despite what the urban planners claim, accessibility is no substitute for mobility, as mobility gives people access to more economic opportunities and competitive markets. We will reach peak car only when someone could invent a form of transportation that is faster, cheaper, and more convenient than driving, and the only likely such invention is the self-driving car.