"The erosion of car-dependence will be fun, enriching and sudden."
Members of the BCCC are passionate about the benefits of cycling and active transportation. They consistently lead by example and are connected with some of the best ideas about how to move towards a heathier, more sustainable climate and culture through adoption of new perspectives on transportation.
See below for a recent post from our Board Chair, Peter Ladner.
What I like about Horace Dediu, besides his deeply insightful mind, is his utterly convincing view of a transportation future that is simpler, more efficient, more affordable, less polluting, healthier, happier, more inclusive, using a fraction of the resources of our current model, GDP-boosting yet delivering immediate, meaningful GHG reductions.
Dediu is a tech analyst and economist. He sees transportation through the lens of technologies that have disrupted societies throughout history. He coined the term “micromobility” and in this podcast (What is Micromobility and Why does it matter?), he lays it all out. Hint: cycling is just a part of it, EVs entirely miss the point. If you don’t have time to hear it all, here are some highlights:
6:37: the heart of what micromobility is
11:37: the shift to human-scaled transportation is here
15:21: comparing the tsunami of micromobility to the arrival of mobile computing devices and (20:00) the multiplication of electric motors in our lives
23:00: how quickly transportation tech is changing our world, and (23:35) how scooters are evolving like fruit-flies compared to (27:45) very slow transitions in the car industry.
29:57: How micromobility is impacting cities, and why cities are important.
34:15: Cities have not been designed for mobility—they’re too tied to “automobility”.
37:15: Don’t wait for safe infrastructure for micromobility; it will follow new tech adoption.
41:10: Why and how we value short trips more than long ones, but our transportation infrastructure is all built around long trips with cargo.
49:00: How micromobility has survived setbacks because it’s doing a vital job and users are almost universally satisfied.
55:26: Micro is vital to reducing GHG emissions, while (59:00) EVs are a waste of resources and miss the point.
1:03: Micromobility increases GDP while lowering emissions.
1:05: Owned micromobility devices are prevailing over shared ones.
1:16:50: How to escape thinking about micromobility as needing regulation and insurance comparable to cars. Why it’s OK to be a cheater: “cheating” e-bikes (not a bike, not a car) are like “cheating” smartphones.