#37: If you’re going less than a mile, walk or cycle. About half of car journeys are under two miles, yet these create more pollution than longer journeys as the engine isn’t warmed up yet.
Bless the hearts of the ones who wrote this one. You see their point: quit driving all the time and walk when you can to cut down on pollution. Walking is also good for the body and mind. The benefit/costs ratio of walking vs. driving depends a great deal on context. I live about a mile from a shopping district in which lies the grocery store, the bagel store, and the pizza parlor. There is also a Target and an AMC theatre. It may as well be on the moon. Phoenix isn’t designed for pedestrians. From May to September the temperatures hit highs well above 40C (over 100F). Walking saves gas and cuts down on air pollution but it risks one dropping from dehydration and heat exhaustion. A friend from Chicago once came for a visit. He lives downtown where there is no need for a car given the “L” and all things within walking distance. He thinks nothing of walking a mile so he walked to said mall a couple of times while he was in town. He told me during his strolls people in cars would stop to ask him if he was all right and even offer him a ride.
I live near by an elementary school and as far as I can tell no children walks to school but they are all dropped off and picked up by mothers in large vehicles. The heat is a factor, probably but I surmise there is an element of fear that their child will be abducted, picked up by illegal aliens or drag queens or other evil beings. Perhaps there is peer pressure too. A mother who lets her children walk to school will be judged as negligent so she drives the kiddies three blocks out of vanity what will the neighbors think.*
People do the most convenient thing that is in front of them. If the stairs are ‘right there’ they will be used rather than the lift. If it is easier to drive than walk people will drive.. I would gladly take the bus and the train if they weren’t so far away and inconvenient to use.**
I don’t see myself walking to the mall particularly as I am going there to shop for groceries and that’s not easy to lug home. I try to keep my outings by vehicle to a minimum and ‘bundled’ into several stops. I may feel different if and when I get an electric car, then I won’t feel as guilty for driving a mile. Maybe no doubt the 100 ways editors will find something faulty about that in time.
Do you live somewhere where walking is feasible or are you obliged to motor everywhere?
*I once heard of a mother getting to trouble for allowing her daughter to walk to school. The police picked the kid up and the mother reported to DCFS. I don’t remember if she was imprisoned.
**The nearest Amtrak station is 2-3 hours away in Flagstaff, and it is notoriously not on time. By the time I get to the train and board it etc. I could have gotten to my destination in less time – and I have a car too.
Spo-Reflections 
32 comments
January 30, 2023 at 4:55 PM
Steven
Since moving in August, I’ve been doing so much walking as the local grocery store, drug store, bank and downtown are within blocks. And this is suburbia, not Chicago. So I’m glad #37 works for me. 🙂
January 30, 2023 at 6:41 PM
Urspo
a testimony! I am glad for you – envious too. I may keep this into account next time I move in am looking for a new place.
January 30, 2023 at 5:14 PM
Old Lurker
Yes, I agree that Phoenix is a hellscape. Having said that, in my experience thems who say they would use public transportation “if only” rarely do, because public transportation will never be more convenient than driving.
If only you had a bicycle in your garage! With a couple of panniers (or at worst a reasonable backpack) it might well be possible to regularly travel to Uncle Albertsons to pick up a few things at a time, the way the Europeans do. Alas.
As Spo-fans are sick of hearing, I am a Poor, and thus walk or bicycle to my destinations. I don’t even have the budget for the bus. According to my records I was last in a vehicle in August of 2021, when I took an intercity trip using mass transit. This sounds like a brag (and it is!) but the reality is that when I am no longer able to use my legs I will be pretty much immobile. The thought gives me anxiety attacks.
January 31, 2023 at 6:52 AM
Urspo
When Spring arrives I hope to get down those bicycles and get in some biking. Let us hope so.
January 31, 2023 at 2:25 PM
Old Lurker
If groceries at Uncle Albertson’s is too ambitious, there are always bagels at Einstein’s to entice you.
Also note that in Phoenix you need not wait until spring. The body warms up as it cycles, and if the temperature is a few degrees above freezing you will be comfortable so long as you can drag Michigan mittens from your grey bins. This sounds like unhinged cycling zealotry but it is true.
January 31, 2023 at 11:50 PM
Richard
Old Lurker, have you slipped through the cracks? I used to just walk or bicycle everywhere. But now i cant do that anymore.
It took a few years for me or anyone else to notice. All of the sudden i ended up being unable.
Because me and my community are national treasures, somebody said why don’t you try a mobility scooter?
No way, if it means im gonna go be a Mormon.
Haha.
But seriously, think about it. I love my little scooter. They cost about -1500 to 2000 dollars. I go to buy cheese and wine and bread. I go to ride around and look at things and say hello to my neighbors. Results may vary. I also watch the birds and pay attention to the weather.
If you are too much of a Poor, we will figure something out. If you are in a similar situation, i would recommend a scooter.
We could do that. We could raise the funds.
Please don’t tell me about how you want to die and give up.
I just spent the day with a Mormon boy. They don’t like being called Mormon. Officially,, it is Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Ok, i know i am a Gentile, and you are still a Mormon to me. I asked if it was offensive, and he said yes.
So now i know, don’t say mormon when you are with a mormon. They are sensitive and touchy about the whole subject.
So, back to the Old Lurker, i am encouraged that he is still here.
January 30, 2023 at 8:03 PM
Mistress Borghese
Please….here each kid gets picked up at the end of their driveways. And then we wonder why we’re a nation of lard asses. When I went to middle and high school, the whole neighborhood only had three bus stops and you were assigned to one of them, and one had to, gulp…walk to it.
January 31, 2023 at 6:53 AM
Urspo
I would love to return to my middle and grade schools and walk home to measure the distance. I think it was a couple of miles. No one thought this abnormal or dangerous.
January 30, 2023 at 8:42 PM
Will Jay
Walking to the doughnut shop is about mile. Walking to the ice cream parlor is less than a mile. Knowing my fondness for carbs, sugar, fats, and everything that I shouldn’t eat but want to, I walk by them when they are closed. Le Target is a bit closer, but curbside pickup is difficult (people get puzzled when you stand in the parking stall), so I bundle trips to Le Target while I am doing other errands.
The good news is that the transit district recently rerouted the buses so there is now daily service instead of just commuter service in my neighborhood – unfortunately it is at infrequent intervals. However, you only have to be 62 years old to qualify for the discounted “Senior” rate. I have my card. I’m cheaper than I am proud.
January 31, 2023 at 6:54 AM
Urspo
oh oh
a walk-to doughnut shop sounds too tempting for me!
January 30, 2023 at 9:24 PM
Linda Practical Parsimony
I cannot walk to the car without holding onto the railing. I stagger about to get into and out of the electric grocery cart which they bring to the car!
However, no one walks except some poor hapless guy who want to go to the grocery store. It is not walkable–no sidewalks!
It was the same way at my town. I walked two blocks on sidewalks to a Piggly Wiggly, but they moved it away and put in the Power Board. Even there when I wanted to shop at a grocery store a mile away, there were no sidewalks. But, there were mud puddles in the pavement, no shoulders without weeds and gullies, mud. To go to that store on foot or bicycle, one had to be a hardy, fearless soul. And, I was in good shape, just not hardy…lol.
January 31, 2023 at 6:54 AM
Urspo
Good point! Many places do not make walking easy, so people don’t.
January 30, 2023 at 10:03 PM
DwightW.
I would be able to walk my dog we are just out of reach of any retail. There is a county park within the mile. 2 miles and it’s paradise every store restaurant and shop almost on the planet.
January 31, 2023 at 6:55 AM
Urspo
Oh to have a nearby park to have a walk!
January 31, 2023 at 4:40 AM
David Godfrey
The primary reason I bought, where I bought, is I am a 10 minute walk to a subway station. My office is 6 floors directly above a subway station. Grocery shopping without a car, is difficult, but much can and is done without a car.
January 31, 2023 at 6:55 AM
Urspo
Yes, when I look for a house I will keep into account items like this.
January 31, 2023 at 5:02 AM
BadNoteB
OMG I’ve been chuckling since 5:14 p.m. at visions of our Spo pedaling that 10-speed garage decoration en route home, panniers overflowing with Goldfish crackers and assorted royal tidbits from Uncle Albertsons! I so hope this will become a banner photo for some future post. Or perhaps a bulging pannier pose to enhance Mr. Fearsome’s blog? 😉
During the 20 years we’ve lived in our area the population has doubled, urban sprawl has increased the diameter of our desert oasis by over 25 miles, while public transit remains totally dependent on an antiquated bus system that hasn’t had a prayer of keeping pace with the gluttonous appetite for growth shown by civic leaders.
Perhaps this is a local quirk, but most of our newer housing developments are being built without sidewalks. Our “snooty” hood has them but they’re not the old fashioned contiguous stretches of concrete lining both sides of the street. Each street has only one sidewalk (total) that is segmented at property lines and staggered on alternating sides of the road. To walk on concrete from our driveway to the nearest corner would require crossing the street six times over a distance of 1/2 block!
Due to serious flash-flooding issues during monsoon season, newer building codes require a minimum 3ft elevation increase from street to house level on each lot. Similarly, roads are graded with high centers that slope downward toward gutters to encourage drainage. While great fun for skateboarders and not an issue while driving, lack of a flat surface takes a toll on ankles and calves over a relatively short walking distance and has been instrumental in tripping over my own two feet on more than one journey to the communal mailbox.
These are but a few of the issues that perpetuate my love affair with the treadmill at the gym – carbon footprint be damned!
January 31, 2023 at 6:56 AM
Urspo
There are a couple of bus stops not too far from the mall. It is common to see empty shopping carts there. People having bought things, brought them to the bus stop but not return the carts.
January 31, 2023 at 12:41 PM
Old Lurker
Whoever designs your housing developments is either sadistic or insane. I have read of many perversions during my time on the Internet, and useless staggered sidewalks are among the worst.
January 31, 2023 at 5:39 AM
Debbie W.
You mentioned that Phoenix lacks sidewalks which would make it more pedestrian-friendly, and that’s definitely the key issue. I live about 1.5
miles from a small grocery store, a couple of local restaurants, a thrift shop, and a library. I can and do walk to these establishments, as they meet all of my
basic needs. But, we, too, lack sidewalks. That would make my walking so much more convenient and safer.
January 31, 2023 at 6:57 AM
Urspo
There are sidewalks here but seldom used due to the heat. and the walks don’t go to places other than around the neighborhood, which are only used to walk dogs.
January 31, 2023 at 5:48 AM
Ron
Walking is the best exercise. The best bar none.
January 31, 2023 at 6:58 AM
Urspo
There is a lot of data to support this. Walking 30 minutes a day provides all sorts of good things
February 1, 2023 at 3:47 AM
Richard
Easy for you to say. Phoenix is not a “walking is the best exercise” kind of metropolis, last time i visited. It is kind of a sketchy place. I think that city would wither my fronds.
I know that i have many people there, and i mean no disrespect.
Phoenix just has a bad reputation sometimes, a little like Las Vegas ran off with Kari Lake and paid Donald Trump for a cheap wedding license. That kind of reputation. Who am i to judge?
January 31, 2023 at 7:21 AM
jenn
Alas, living in a very small rural village means that driving is the only option to do anything. Of course, one can walk just for the sake of walking, but it will get you nowhere, except maybe the post office. There are absolutely no stores in the village, not even a gas station.
I taught for many years in a small town and children got to school by school bus, by a parent driving them, or by walking or bicycling/scootering.
Your heat might be equal to our cold sometimes. However, you can bundle up and dress according to the cold, but you can’t really escape the heat can you? -Jenn
February 1, 2023 at 6:55 AM
Urspo
Yes, living in a small town means driving. Rural areas even more so.
January 31, 2023 at 10:14 AM
Robzilla
I am obliged to motor everywhere. There is no way I’d visit the laundromat by foot. Wet clothes weigh a ton, and the walk is uphill.
February 1, 2023 at 6:56 AM
Urspo
You make a point that walking to a store means hauling it all home. No fun that.
January 31, 2023 at 3:46 PM
Gigi Rambles
It’s about a mile or so to one of the local grocery stores and maybe about two miles into the heart of the “village” (what the town elders like to call this suburban community) – but walking would be downright dangerous as there are no sidewalks along the “highway” to get to either place. And even if we lived “in town” walking to get to most places would be impossible and the bus service is a joke. Even if I wanted to take a bus into work, I’d have to drive more than half way there just to catch the bus.
February 1, 2023 at 6:56 AM
Urspo
Yes, we have designed our lives to rely on driving.
February 2, 2023 at 1:06 AM
Parnassus
You can check the distances to your old school (also current walks/distances) using Google maps. My elementary school was exactly 3/4 mile from my house, and we walked this twice a day, as we went home for lunch. Trash days were the best as we could pick up junk off the curb.
–Jim
February 4, 2023 at 8:00 AM
Lori Hawkins
I am ashamed to say I live one mile from work and have never walked to or from there. While we have a doctor originally from Japan who lives around the corner from me and walks it every day. My only excuse is I am afraid of the wild life in our area.