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Will mobility in the twenty-first century go into reverse?
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Will traffic jams and climate change force us to reverse the mobility and transport "progress" we have seen in the twentieth century?
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Ha! Now that is a good question. Do we stop being as mobile to save our future? I don't think so. I think people won't act, or react unless there is a clear and PRESENT danger. The problem with climate change is that it is not in front of us. It is a clear danger, but our alert signals won't go off like they would if, say, a lion was attacking us. Climate change is much like smoking. It will eventually kill us, but won't alert us.
It's an interesting development. The most viable cutting edge green technologies today seem to be borrowing from the past. I'm thinking of wind mills and streetcars. Here is an article I just read in the AC blog that talks about just that.
http://www.alternativechannel.tv/blog/en/index/streetcars_dramatic_comeback/
Cool videos too.
The streetcar is making a dramatic comeback, and the bicycle is more popular than ever. Cities are investing millions to create bicycle paths and to create more pedestrian friendly spaces. Things are really going back to the basics, aren't they?
Like it or not, the driving force to reduced personal transport is economic. My children do not even have a driver's license, they cannot afford a car. I have had to sell my car since I can no longer afford a car (more specifically I can't afford the insurance).
I now ride in diesel powered buses that idle up to 10 minutes at a time and take meandering routes to my destination. I cannot believe this is a lower pollution/person than driving a car.
Trains, as in subways, are incredibly efficient and if electric are near ideal transport.
What is most important is low cost, pollution-free and safe on-demand electrical power such as could be provided by LFTRs. Liquid Flouride Thorium Reactors are inherently safe and have no long term radio-active waste, see energyfromthorium.com Such a power source will not only reduce pollution, it will help revive the economy because of its low cost. Conservation, while a good thing, is not necessary to reduce pollution. Pollution free energy and re-cycling are the answers.