US traffic fatality rate is 1.24 deaths per 10,000 people per year. This is a more than acceptable level of risk; I’m perfectly happy to shave off 1% of 1% of my life expectancy to be able to have near-absolute freedom of movement.
As a society, 10-15% of household spending goes towards transportation costs (largely vehicle payments, fuel, and maintenance).
When I visited New York City for a few days some years ago, I could feel the ground shaking the entire time, and it was absolutely miserable. Large buildings were the worst. I was anxious and nauseous the entire time, like a constant earthquake was going on. Elevators are really bad, I break out into a sweat, so a place where I could bike everywhere would likely involve elevators on both sides of the journey. Subways are also awful, bus isn’t much better, but at least I can sit up front, all of it. I’m effectively “allergic” to public transportation. I can barely sit in the front seat when someone else is driving.
It’d be weird if one day restrictive laws are passed limiting the use of personal vehicles, as I feel I’d have to apply for some sort of disability. I’m worried about self driving cars because I wouldn’t be able to do the sync up between my brain and the car without directly controlling the vehicle.
Canada has half the rate of the USA, Netherlands around third, and they have the same "near-absolute" freedoms.
(Canada vs. USA vs. NL rates) https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/indicators/indicator-detai...
The risk to myself is at least as high as the risk to anyone else. And yes, I am willing to impose negative externalities on people if I think it’s still utilitarian. You impose the same kind of externalities, even if you aren’t aware of it.
Talk about hyperbole - Having a car in America does in fact you can get to pretty much anywhere else in the country within a couple days. That's facts. Most of that time will be crusing too - not traffic.
What gives you the right to do it? Presumably you interact with people at least occasionally; how dare you expose them to pathogenic risk like that?
> It gives you hours of your day siting in traffic
No it doesn’t. I don’t sit in traffic for more than 15 minutes a day. Actually, the only time my commute is bad is when I occasionally have to take the train.
> what about those of us who don't own a car
You should probably live in a city or something. I don’t really have any input on your choices here. But I would appreciate if people who didn’t own a car wouldn’t take out their frustration on people who do own cars.