We saw Jim Bacon’s 4 June post on the Aptera concept car (“300 MPG. This could be the Coolest Car Ever?”) just before we left on a 22 mile chained trip to accomplish seven errands that could not be done here in Greater Warrenton Fauquier. (For those who came in late, since 1973 we have primarily worked very near where we lived and have tried to minimize our travel except where there is no alternative.)
We stated our view of Aptera in a comment when the vehicle was called to our attention via a comment following the 2 June post “Tremble, Mortals, the Rebellion is Unleashed.”
Tiny cars are old, old news. Folks have been designing little vehicles that go for miles with not much fuel for decades.
Mini cars can be part of a solution to Access and Mobility. We helped design Planned New Communities around mini-vehicles over three decades ago. They can work well in some existing urban environments but it is not a slam dunk. It takes a design / redesign of the settlement pattern and the transport infrastructure at the Alpha Village and Alpha Community scale as well as the design of the vehicle to achieve a real alternative to Large, Private Vehicles in most environments.
Jim was so excited about the Aptera in his 4 June post that the little three wheeler and its ilk were on our mind as we carried out our journey. This was not a “road trip” and we took the least traveled routes that got us to a series of destinations in a reasonable time frame. The trip did not take us on I-66, the most heavily traveled road we used was US Route 29.
In spite of this, in our travels we encountered two 18-wheel flatbeds owned by a company in Alabama hauling very heavy loads. One driver knew where he was going and apparently was running late, the other driver did know where he was going and was trying to keep up – ran some yellow / red lights, etc. The Alabama trucks were hauling just the sort of loads that should be on a railroad, not cutting off drivers in vehicles weighing one twentieth as much. At least we were visible and had good visibility from our vehicle.
Then there were several landscaper’s trucks with big trailers full of parked (not secured) mowers and no brakes who were late for their next mowing job. There was an Escalade driver who did not want to be passed by a VW beetle and two Lexus drivers who wanted to get in front of the school bus before it made its next stop (more red lights) and then … You get the idea, it was a normal day on the roadways.
No person in their right mind would drive an Aptera under these conditions and we were just running errands. One of the reasons I sold my first sports car, among others, was that I watched what happened to an MG-midget that was unseen by the driver of a semi when the truck changed lanes. An Aptera would fit nicely under the bed of, and then under the wheels of, one of those Alabama flatbeds…
An Aptera would look like burner cover after being hit even by the VW Beetle. Driving a vehicle that rides low to the ground at 30, 40, 50 or 60 mph among other vehicles that weigh up to 30 times as much would be a form of insanity. Even the far more substantial Smart car profiled in THE PROBLEM WITH CARS would be “uncomfortable.”
A few days later (6 June 2008) CNN ran a story “SUV owners keep on truckin’ despite gas prices.” You can guess why. The disaggregated lives of the owners lead them to believe that they have no alternative but to use these vehicles. And now Chrysler will guarantee they do not need to worry about gas prices if they buy a new Chrysler built SUV.
Perhaps you would like to get a hybrid? On the 9th US News had a story titled “Is a Hybrid Worth it.” For the most part the answer is no from a return-on-investment perspective. The vast majority of the current rash of hybrids are just Green Greed – by companies that make them – and Green Fog by those who buy them.
What is the bottom line here?
The US of A has evolved:
A settlement pattern,
A transport system to serve that settlement pattern, and
A system of providing Large Private Vehicles to drive on that system.
Collectively, these three realities make incremental “improvements” in Mobility and Access
Unwise for those at the top of the economic Ziggurat, and
Impossible for the majority who are not at the top.
What does this say about Fundamental Transformation (formerly Fundamental Change) in human settlement patterns and Fundamental Transformations in governance structure to achieve functional settlement patterns?
It says that until the majority of citizens understand the need for those Fundamental Transformations they will not happen,
And further, all the discussion of “solutions,” not just by the Tiger Riders but by well-intended incrementalists (“we-have-to-start-somewhere” / “that-is-all-we-can-sell-politically” / “this-is-a-step-in-the-right-direction”) only puts off the day when there is informed consensus of the need for Transformation / Change.
Drive safely and have a good weekend.
EMR
PS: Jim said he would be traveling Saturday and it would be good to put up something. I hope he had a safe drive up from Greater Orlando, he was not in an Aptera.