Quote:
Originally Posted by ebacon
Agreed.
As an engineer I firmly believe that land use policy has a bigger effect on energy consumption than any other factor. The reason boils down to simple math.
It takes a lot of energy to move butts from one place to another. The less the butts need to be moved the more energy you save.
Old cultures have an advantage in this regard that can't be denied. Their cities were laid out prior to the invention of the internal combustion engine or electricity. Their cities are therefore inherently efficient.
Our cities, and culture, on the other hand were developed with cheap energy as a foundation. It will take a sea change to make even a small improvement on the waste that is in our DNA. Add to that a culture based on making money instead of saving energy and we are in a bad way.
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The other side of the coin is that our freedom of mobility gives us choice. If the grocery at the end of the block is overpriced or has inferior product, you can easily patronize another store as long as you have affordable transportation. If we lose the cheap transport, neighborhood businesses of all stripes are given a sort of geographic monopoly. Those at the bottom financially are, of course, effected the most.