How to fight car-centric culture

People usually take pride in being good and safe drivers. But there is a serious problem on the streets of America.

In 2021, road deaths will reach a 16-year high.An estimated 42,915 died that year(opens in new window)Fatalities are up year-on-year in several categories, including pedestrians, cyclists, seniors and motorcyclists, and more urban road and daytime crashes.U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg called deteriorating road safety a ‘crisis on America’s roads’(opens in new window).” These trends have improved slightly(opens in new window) Pedestrian and cyclist fatalities continue to rise in the first nine months of 2022.

Solving this problem seems like an impossible task not for the average person, but prominent social media groups and content creators want to convince you otherwise. They want to help people understand why roads are dangerous, how they can be made safer for everyone, and what they can do to improve roads in their communities. Their tactics and solutions are not always the same, but while alarming a car-centric culture, this “crisis” centers the streets around our collective well-being, not the convenience of cars. design and make it as difficult as possible for a person to drive recklessly.

There’s Mr. Barricade(opens in new window)a mustachioed private transportation engineer explaining in turn(opens in new window) criticize(opens in new window) Elements of traffic design to his 1.7 million TikTok followers.more than just a bike(opens in new window)is a YouTube account with nearly 900,000 subscribers that posts long videos about urban planning and walkable cities that regularly receive millions of views. Private Facebook Group New Urbanist Memes for Transit-Oriented Teens(opens in new window) (NUMTOT) specializes in combining urban planning policy solutions with humorous or acrimonious automotive culture for more than 227,000 members.Above car war podcast(opens in new window)supported by over 1,700 people on Patreon(opens in new window)the show’s three hosts “fight to undo a century’s worth of damage done by automobiles”.

These creators have been around for more than a few years, car war Co-host Sarah Goodyear has noticed a recent surge in interest in making America’s streets safer and more walkable. Goodyear, a journalist who has covered urban planning and road safety since 2006, attributes this curiosity in part to a decade of advocacy in the city. In cities, grassroots organizations have pressed lawmakers to respond to and prevent pedestrian and cyclist fatalities. It also reflects the climate change movement’s efforts to link car culture with a worse future for the planet.And, unexpectedly, the pandemic is a combination of relatively benign conditions of reduced traffic during lockdowns and a spike in death tolls when people are behind the wheel, often stressed and sometimes intoxicated. provided a disturbing contrast between(opens in new window).

According to Goodyear, the rise of social media over the past 15 years has made it significantly easier and more fun to talk about road safety in a small portion of content such as memes, TikToks and YouTube videos. At the same time, skeptics join the car-centric cultural tools and connect with like-minded people who otherwise feel like they’re losing a big battle and feeling alone.

“Once the car blindness is taken away, you can’t turn a blind eye to what they are: big, loud, dangerous, fossil fuel emitting, expensive and cumbersome,” Goodyear said. increase.

Come Meme, Stay in Conversation

When Vignesh Swaminathan, aka Mr. Barricade, launched his TikTok account in 2020, he found success with the algorithm. Swaminathan runs a civil engineering company, Crossroad Lab.(opens in new window) Located in San Jose, California, it designs and builds statewide transportation projects. That means he’s on the scene often, ready to turn the intersection into his TikTok classroom and dance floor. His performances are often set to rap and trap music, and field analyzes of traffic design elements typically feature interchanges, traffic lights, pedestrian crossings, bike lanes, ditches, and overpasses. Swaminathan uses TikTok specifically to appeal to the average person.

“If everyone is scrolling anyway, why can’t I bring them some outreach?” he says.

Swaminathan appeals to those who are new to the topic and do not know how to pursue change, and to those who are “totally cut off” from civic processes, marginalized or neglected areas because they do not trust their governments. I have a particular interest in engaging with the people who live there. , undocumented, or unable to participate due to barriers such as language or disability. .Swaminathan’s traffic planning and safety video aims to highlight improved design elements such as protected intersections(opens in new window) and speed hump(opens in new window)calms traffic and protects cyclists and pedestrians.

But Indian-American Swaminathan’s journey to becoming a TikTok star has also included being inundated with racist comments and memes using his image. To stop the onslaught, Swaminathan encouraged his followers to drown out offensive content with their own traffic-related memes. His followers appeared in the comments with anti-racist reactions and videos of him dancing in front of traffic signs, ditches and pedestrian bridges. Swaminathan says nerd traffic engineering jokes masked racist attacks, though the latter still surfaces in his comments.

“So many people come for the memes and stay for the conversation.”

Swaminathan and his unique community of loyal supporters make road safety and design accessible, dynamic, and even fun. Other influencers and groups have also used humor to their advantage.New Urbanist memes for his transit-oriented teens on Facebook group(opens in new window) (NUMTOT) co-founder Emily Orenstein says there is considerable overlap between educating members, discussing solutions, and posting silly things.(opens in new window) For public transport jokes. In more serious posts, members often discuss “alternative futures” to the current status quo in which cars dominate and pollute the roads of the United States.

“A lot of people really come for the memes and stay for the conversation,” says Orenstein.

Of course, online exchanges on cars, safety, and policies depend on whether participants want to dramatically reduce the number of cars on the road, or believe they can break away from a car-centric culture and reckless driving. can be paid. On the subreddit diplomatically called Fuckcars(opens in new window), the moderator acknowledges a nuance that is difficult to discuss in this debate. This may include some people who love cars as beautiful machines, and others who dislike “car-focused” infrastructure.

Goodyear says diversity in online accounts and groups is essential. ”

Turn online conversations into real change

Activists say online curiosity and outrage over car-centric policies can be channeled through advocating new solutions in city councils, protesting deadly intersections, joining transportation-related committees, and public urban planning. Attending conferences, exploring mobile legality, and more. DIY safety measures(opens in new window) It’s like painting a crosswalk when the city refuses to provide one. Traffic safety groups are present in major cities across the United States, including San Francisco.(opens in new window),Chicago(opens in new window)New York(opens in new window)Minneapolis(opens in new window)Denver(opens in new window)Boston(opens in new window).

Creator Nathan Arebach, whose focus is on creating walkable cities, says the online movement is focused on policy. Because these solutions have the potential to be transformative. After all, Allebach notes that cars tend to be surly drivers when even the nicest of people are late, stressed, or distracted.(opens in new window).”

“People are realizing that this is a problem for all of us, not someone else,” says Allebach.

In one TikTok video with 1.4 million views, Allebach convinces the revival of The Third Place, a gathering place for walkable communities largely destroyed by car-centric urban and suburban planning. It spends less than 3 minutes claiming One commenter lamented, “This makes me so sad,” to which Arebach replied.

Goodyear says enthusiasm has encouraged him car war Listeners should participate in advocacy campaigns for each other and through community activities.

“That’s the most exciting thing for me,” she says. “I think we’re part of a really genuine, active, and very engaged community.”

Bryan Culbertson, an engineer in Oakland, California, has seen dozens of Not Just Bikes.(opens in new window) The videos helped shape his road safety activism.Last year, Culbertson Rapid response to traffic violations(opens in new window)grassroots movement(opens in new window) They are commemorating those who died in cars, protesting at dangerous intersections, and pressuring city officials to improve safety. The group has over 40 of his members and is organized via Signal and Slack. So far, they have successfully lobbied the city’s transportation department and transit agencies to reassess the city’s most dangerous streets. This main road is the one on which drivers regularly speed through pedestrian crossings, especially near bus stops.

Culbertson is optimistic that further change is possible.

“Walking around the neighborhood and talking to people in terms of what they want the experience to be like, they want to feel safe, they want their kids to be able to ride their bikes, or they say, ‘Maybe they’ll run into the street.'” “You just have to be on your front lawn without the constant angst of being,” he says.