A nation of fools grows its dependence on fuel

Brian O'Neill offered an interesting perspective on our folly:


A nation of fools grows its dependence on fuel
By Brian O'Neill, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette


It's been said that one reason for the decline of the American middle class is that, unlike Europeans, we live in places where second and even third cars are necessities. Ken Joseph of Dormont pointed me to a book that makes that point: "Suburban Nation: The Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American Dream,'' by Andres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk and Jeff Speck.

I grabbed the book and found statements that Americans drive twice as many miles as we did just a couple of decades ago, spend twice as much per capita on transportation as other developed nations, and that an inexpensive second car such as the Ford Escort still costs more than $6,000 a year (including gasoline, insurance, parking, etc.).

"At conventional mortgage rates,'' the authors say, "that figure translates into more than $60,000 in home purchasing power.''

We must like this setup. We're still building for more driving, not less. The Pennsylvania Turnpike intends to spend $200 million rebuilding the eight-mile stretch between the Butler Valley and Allegheny Valley interchanges, widening it from four lanes to six, which is part of the turnpike's Total Reconstruction Initiative.

Such an ambitious upgrade stands out with the state cutting costs almost everywhere else, but all that toll money needs to go somewhere.

The waggish authors of "Suburban Nation'' described high school as "a place where we store our children while earning the money to pay for their cars.'' Let's hope some of those kids grow up to help us figure out some cheaper ways to get around.