Imagine There's No Traffic Jam

Today is World Car Free Day (I'd link but apparently all the intention caused their site to crash). I celebrated--as I do most days--by riding my bike to the train station. It's not hard! It saves lots of gas and carbon dioxide and justifies that extra slice of lemon meringue pie.

 But the same folks who deny that all that CO2 is warming the atmosphere take a dim view of cycling; a press release from the Competitive Enterprise Institute (a major beneficiary of funds from the Koch brothers, wouldn't you know it) encourages us to "to protest - by taking a drive, just because."

"The automobile has improved the lives of hundreds of millions of people in remarkable ways," says CEI General Counsel Sam Kazman. "Instead of pushing a misguided political agenda to reduce car use, we should be celebrating automobility."

Emboldened, CEI issues a throwdown: 

"In contrast to the photographs on various Car-Free Day websites, which show healthy young people in picture-perfect weather, advocates of car-free living ought to be portray what it would mean in more realistic conditions, such as: 
When it's raining
When you’re carrying several bags of groceries
When you’re carrying a baby, with a toddler alongside you
On crutches After midnight
Without using a car or cab to get to the train or bus station
Any combination of the above."

Easy-peasy, as my 5-year-old would say. Intrepid Climate Crossroads blogger Canyon Kyle has already covered everything except the crutches here, here, and here. And if you're on crutches? There's always this.

-Paul Rauber