At last, New York City started its congestion pricing program on January 5.

We knew that the local mainstream press would be out in force interviewing drivers and elevating the voices of those who were against the toll. We knew that because the New York press corps has a long history of putting the people who commute by car in New York above those who don’t.

So we went out on congestion pricing’s first weekday morning and talked to some people who weren’t driving. Some of the people we talked with were random New Yorkers, but mostly we heard from advocates who knew we would be there and showed up in the freezing cold to talk about why they were so excited about the launch of this historic program.

Thank you to all the people who spared some of their time on a cold morning to talk to us, especially Samir Lavingia, Charlie Todd, Chris Sanders, Alex Duncan, Rich Miller, Noel Hidalgo, Seth Solomonow, Kirby Kersels, Paul Krikler and Steve from Peekskill.

This episode was edited by Ali Lemer.

*** Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive exclusive access to bonus content, ad-free versions of regular episodes, free stickers, merch discounts, early access to live shows, and more. ***

LINKS:

• The MTA’s FAQ page answers all your questions about congestion pricing.
• Check out this congestion pricing traffic tracker for collected data showing the program’s impact.

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How do dense, walkable cities influence what people wear? Derek Guy has some thoughts. Otherwise known as The Menswear Guy, Derek rose to fame on social media for his takes on men's fashion, but he also dips his toes into urbanism from time to time, arguing that the ecosystems that support quality craftsmanship and expert tailoring are strongest in places where it's easy to get around without a car.

Derek joins us to talk about what the great fashion capitals of the world have in common, why Tokyo is a hotbed of fashion enthusiasts and craftspeople, how the housing crisis is affecting style, and more.

*** Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive exclusive access to bonus content, ad-free versions of regular episodes, free stickers, merch discounts and more. ***

Become a Patreon supporter to get pre-sale tickets to our live show on April 24th in Minneapolis, presented by Our Streets.

This episode was produced with support from Cleverhood. Listen for the latest discount on the best and most stylish rain gear for walking and cycling.

LINKS:

Follow Derek Guy on Bluesky, Instagram, and other social media sites.

Read more from Derek Guy at Die, Workwear.

Read Ametora: How Japan Saved American Style and Status and Culture: How Our Desire for Social Rank Creates Taste, Identity, Art, Fashion, and Constant Change, both by W. David Marx

Pick up official podcast merch in our store.

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Read

This is a preview of a Patreon-exclusive bonus episode. For complete access to this and all of our bonus content, plus ad-free versions of regular episodes, merch discounts, pre-sale tickets to live shows, and more, become a Patreon supporter of The War on Cars.

For our year-end bonus episode, we asked our Patreon supporters to tell us the best things that happened to them or in their communities in 2024. We heard from listeners around the globe about the many victories, from the political to the personal, that stood out to them in the past year and that give them hope for the future. There was a lot to celebrate, including lower speed limits, new bike commutes, and a string of victories at the local level that mean progress in The War on Cars.

Why do people behave so badly behind the wheel of a car? Why do reporters and the police use passive language to describe automobile crashes and traffic violence? How do the words we use make a difference in street safety? Dr. Tara Goddard, one of the top scholars studying what it is that cars do to our brains and the way we treat each other in the world, has some thoughts — and she’s done the research.

Tara is an associate professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning at Texas A&M University. Her work focuses on creating a just transportation system through safe roadway design and inclusive transportation planning.

We talked with her about “motonormativity,” how race influences how drivers treat pedestrians, and why language matters if we want to change the conversation about whom streets are for.

*** Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive exclusive access to bonus content, ad-free versions of regular episodes, free stickers, merch discounts, early access to live shows, and more. ***

This episode was produced with support from Cleverhood and Sheyd Bags. Listen for the latest discount codes.

Buy tickets to our live show with CityNerd on January 31, 2025, at Hunter College in New York City.

LINKS:

Follow Tara on Bluesky.

Some of Tara’s studies:

• “Racial Bias in Driver Yielding at Crosswalks” (Transportation Research)
• “Does News Coverage of Traffic Crashes Affect Perceived Blame and Preferred Solutions? Evidence from an Experiment” (Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives)
• “Windshield Bias, Car Brain, Motonormativity: Different Names, Same Obscured Public Health Hazard” (Transport Findings)

Some other things we discuss in the episode:

Dr. Ian Walker’s research and our interview with him (Episode 99: Car Brain with Dr. Ian Walker)

Sarah’s piece, “How I Became an Urban Monster in Just 10 Minutes” (Bloomberg CityLab)

“Death of Cyclist in Paris Lays Bare Divide in Mayor’s War Against Cars” (New York Times)

“The glare of the sun caused the westbound vehicle to jump the curb” (Emily Walters on Bluesky)

Laura Laker’s new “Road Collision Reporting Guidelines”

Get official podcast merch in our store.

This episode was edited by Ali Lemer. It was recorded at Brooklyn Podcasting Studio by Josh Wilcox. Our music is by Nathaniel Goodyear. Our transcriptions are done by Russell Gragg.

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From mockumentaries to dramas to situation comedies, Ed Begley Jr. has done it all. His truly one-of-a-kind acting career has seen him work with some of the biggest names in Hollywood, including Jack Nicholson, Meryl Streep, and more. But beyond his impressive resume, Ed Begley Jr. is also known for his environmental activism. He's probably the most famous person to have owned some version of an electric vehicle for a lot longer than most people have even been aware of EVs. Ed has been been committed to environmental conservation since at least the 1970s, and he’s designed his life so that it's as free of fossil fuels as possible, with solar panels on the roof, an e-bike in the garage, and a house chosen for its proximity to transit. Notably, he’s taken the LA Metro to the Academy Awards, making a statement in an industry and a city where fancy cars and conspicuous consumption are signs of success. In this fun conversation, Ed Begley Jr. invites us into his home to talk about his work, his activism, and his philosophy about life.

*** Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free versions of all our episodes, special bonus content, stickers, merch discounts, and more. Plus, get pre-sale access to our upcoming live show in New York with CityNerd! ***

This episode was produced with the generous support of the Helen & William Mazer Foundation.

Check out the latest offerings from our friends at Cleverhood and Sheyd Bags.

LINKS:

Buy Ed Begley Jr.’s memoir, To the Temple of Tranquility…and Step on It! at our official Bookshop.org page.

Hayden Begley documented her dad’s trip to the Oscars via LA Metro on TikTok.

The Actor Who Who Rides the Subway to the Oscars (NY Times)

Support Streets For All in Los Angeles by becoming a member.

Grab some podcast merch in our official store.

This episode was edited by Doug Gordon. It was recorded by Avishay Artsy. Transcriptions are by Russell Gragg. Our theme music is by Nathaniel Goodyear.

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This is a preview of a Patreon-exclusive bonus episode. For complete access to this and all of our bonus content, plus ad-free versions of regular episodes, merch discounts, pre-sale tickets to live shows, and more, become a Patreon supporter of The War on Cars.

Back in 2010, the notoriously pugnacious Toronto mayor Rob Ford declared that “the war on the car is over,” and vowed to halt the city’s expansion of bike lanes, transit, and anything that inconvenienced motorists even slightly. Fourteen years later, his brother — Ontario Premier Doug Ford — has continued the family crusade against bike lanes. The Ford government is pushing a bill that would require provincial approval of all bike lanes that repurpose car lanes. If it succeeds, it will have a chilling effect on the ability of cities and towns of all sizes to manage their streets and keep people safe. Plus, a handful of existing bike lanes could be ripped out.

Journalist Sabrina Nanji, a veteran of the Queen’s Park Press Gallery and the founder of the Queens Park Observer joins us to talk about the politics behind Doug Ford’s war on bikes.

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We’re not going to sugarcoat it. That election was tough. But there are some points of hope that can help us make our way forward. We got together in the studio to look at victories around the country for transit and safe streets, and to discuss how we can all hang in there together and continue making positive change in our communities.

*** Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free versions of all our episodes, special bonus content, stickers, merch discounts, and more ***

LINKS:

The good news from Nashville (Nashville Scene)

The good news from Seattle (The Urbanist)

Alexis Mercedes Rinck wins Seattle City Council seat

The good news from San Francisco (SF Standard)

New York legalizes jaywalking (The New York Times)

Alameda County election results

Pick up merch in our official store

This episode was edited by Ali Lemer. It was recorded by Josh Wilcox at the Brooklyn Podcasting Studio. Transcriptions are by Russell Gragg. Our theme music is by Nathaniel Goodyear.

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Adam McKay is the Academy Award–winning screenwriter, director, and producer behind such movies as Don’t Look Up, The Big Short, Vice, Anchorman, Talladega Nights, and more. He is also the founder of Yellow Dot Studios, a nonprofit production studio that raises awareness and mobilizes action on the climate emergency. Adam joins us to discuss his career and the existential anxiety that led him to write and direct the star-studded Don’t Look Up, one of the most successful Netflix movies of all time. We also hear about the books, films, and music that inspired him, and why humor is a useful tool for tackling serious subjects. Plus: Adam's relationship with driving, the power of visual storytelling, and why he thinks the age of the car is already over… even if most people don’t know it yet.

Thank you to Sheyd Bags and Cleverhood for their support. For the latest discount codes, listen to the episode.

*** Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free versions of all our episodes, special bonus content, stickers, merch discounts, and more ***

SHOW NOTES:

Check out Car Commercial 419 and all the excellent work from Yellow Dot Studios. (Donate here!)

Books, movies, and music mentioned in this episode:

Generation Dread by Britt Wray; Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neal Postman; A Paradise Built in Hell by Rebecca Solnit; and The Vortex by Scott Carney & Jason Miklian

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957); Dr. Strangelove (1964); and Dogtooth (2009)

Public Enemy; LL Cool J; Kurtis Blow; Run-DMC; and Eric B. & Rakim

*****

Pick up official podcast merch in our store. Purchase books from podcast guests at our Bookshop.org page.

This episode was edited by Ali Lemer. It was recorded by Kaden Pryor at Third Wheel Podcast Studio in Los Angeles. Transcriptions are by Russell Gragg. Our theme music is by Nathaniel Goodyear. Sound effects from the BBC Sound Effects Archives © 2024 BBC.

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