What’s Wrong With a Car-Centric System? New Video Explains It All

We’re a little bit enamored with this video, produced by the Mexican office of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy and brought to our attention by Copenhagenize.

It’s less than four minutes long, yet it effectively and simply explains many of the most important concepts in transportation policy, including three of my personal favorites: driving subsidies, induced demand and externalities.

Really, this problem — promoting car traffic, despite the high costs to society — is simple enough to explain. Hopefully public education campaigns like this can help Mexico and other developing countries avoid making the same mistakes the United States has made. If not, how long until we see rates of chronic diseases like diabetes and asthma spike in Mexico, India and China?

Elsewhere on the Network today: The Get Around Blog considers the public backlash to Chicago’s proposed speeding camera legislation and wonders why we’ve developed such a casual attitude toward speeding. PubliCola shares the news that Seattle is considering yet another smart zoning change — this one would make it easier for walkable corner stores to set up shop in city neighborhoods. And Bike Delaware, inspired by Tom Vanderbilt’s recent article on America’s walking crisis in Slate, turns a critical eye to the local conditions for pedestrians.