In a recent article in The American Conservative, Jordan McGillis, a policy analyst specializing in energy, climate, and urbanism, describes how politicians are doubling down on cars...but this time on cars “with a different energy system under the hood.”
As an example, he points to a recent bill introduced by Rep. Peter Welch, a Vermont congressman who sits on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. According to Rep. Welch, the Electric CARS Act encourages people to buy electric vehicles (EVs)—which he calls “next generation transportation”—as “a key step...to bring down our global emissions and combat the current climate emergency.”
McGillis begs to differ: not only are many of the green benefits of widespread EV adoption debatable or negligible, they “neglect the deeper problem,” the perpetuation of car-centric culture. “Getting to the heart of the issue,” he writes, “a car is a car, even if it’s electric.” He goes on to say that instead of subsidizing new cars, we would be better served by redirecting our energies and resources toward improving development patterns so that cars don’t have to be so central to our lives in the first place.
Every week on Upzoned, host Abby Kinney, an urban planner in Kansas City, and Chuck Marohn, the president of Strong Towns, take one story from the news and they “upzone” it—they look at it through the Strong Towns lens. This week, Abby and Chuck are talking about McGillis’s article, “The Electric Slide: Car Culture Captures Climate Policy.” They talk about McGillis’s claim that EVs really are “the climate idol of the unimaginative” (one of several memorable phrases from the piece). They discuss whether pushing the purchase of electric cars distracts from the underlying issues of the suburban development pattern, whether or not Strong Towns is “anti-car,” and why building cities around cars—even electric ones—is “antiquated.”
Then in the Downzone, Chuck talks more about the audiobook he’s listening to on the story of human language. And Abby talks about watching her favorite film for the hundredth time—a movie Chuck has yet to see once.
Also in this episode you’ll hear more about a fun upcoming event for Strong Towns members: Late Night with Strong Towns. If you’re already a member, we hope to see you there! If you’re not yet a member, this is the perfect time.
Additional Show Notes
Is the American Dream out of Reach for Most People?
How To Build Better Places Through Small-Scale Development
Fire Departments Can Help Make Streets Safer, and Here’s How
Why Cities Need To Become More Family Friendly
What Los Angeles Can Learn From Paris’ Olympic Village
Indianapolis Empowers People and Drives Change Through Tactical Urbanism
How To Handle Small-Scale Development Finance: Insights From Kansas City
You Don’t Actually Want To Abolish Property Taxes, and Here’s Why
Why New York City’s Traffic Congestion Plan Crashed and Burned
Faith in Action: How Religious Institutions Can Help Solve the Housing Crisis
The Dollar Difference: Why Rural Poverty Benefits Dollar Stores More Than Urban
How To Successfully Navigate the World of Incremental Development
Doug Barrick: Building a Strong Town as a Member of Local Government
Is the Non Profit Sector a Mess of 'Misconduct, Greed and Corruption'?
An Inside Look at the Strong Towns National Gathering
From Bike Lovers to Zoning Experts: The Voices of Strong Towns
Cincinnati Pledges $200K in Funding for Popular Bikeshare Service
Department of Justice Opens Criminal Investigation Into “Housing Cartel”
Inside the Notorious Gridlock of Colorado's I-70
“Redesigning” Cincinnati With the Connected Communities Plan
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