SamuZai
The War on Cars

The War on Cars

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The War on Cars posts

Tell us YOUR origin story!

Hello everybody,

By now you've probably heard our November bonus, Origin Stories, in which Aaron, Sarah and I talked about our jouney from ordinary citizens to activists, writers and hosts of a podcast all about fighting car culture. Among other things, Aaron mentioned his father's warning during a...

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BONUS: Origin Stories

Hello, all you beautiful Patreon supporters!

Have you ever found yourself wondering, how did Aaron, Doug and Sarah get mobilized into the war on cars? What made them this way?

If so, you’re in luck. In this bonus episode, exclusively for Patreon supporters, we dive deep into our own pasts and reveal how our personal experiences with cars drove us to activism, research, wr...

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LIVE at Caveat: Patreon Early Access Tickets!

Hello, friends!

Aaron, Sarah and I are very excited to announce that we'll be returning to Caveat in New York City on Wednesday, January 31st at 7 PM for another live show! 

Discount tickets are now on sale... exclu...

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EPISODE 114: John Bauters, America's Bike Mayor

I am so happy to be able to bring this episode to you from a recent West Coast swing. While I was in the Bay Area, I got to meet and ride along with John Bauters, the mayor of Emeryville, California, who has become known as "America's Bike Mayor" thanks to his relentless advocacy for active transportation in his city.

2023-11-07 11:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post

EPISODE 113: Dark PR with Grant Ennis

Hello, supporters of The War on Cars!

First, some big news.:

1. We're writing a book! You might have seen the announcement on social media already, but we singed a deal with Thesis, an imprint of Penguin Random House, to turn The War on Cars into a book. We'll be working hard on that as we continue to deliver episodes of the podcast. A big thanks to all of you, as t...

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EPISODE 112: Unintended Consequences with Steven Johnson

Hello, Patreon Supporters:

Episode 112 is here!

This year, 2023, marks the hundredth anniversary of the invention of leaded gasoline. Of all the many harms that the automobile has imposed on the environment and humanity over the last century, the effects of leaded gasoline have to be pretty close to the top of the list.

Science and industry were well aware of the dangers of...

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BONUS: Celebrating Your Wins

Hello dear people of Patreon!

We're kicking off October with a bonus episode just for all of you. 

As you can imagine, news happens fast and sometimes there are stories we're dying to talk about that don't quite add up to enough material to support a full episode. In this bonus we do a quick news roundup of stories that have caught our attention before getting to what really ma...

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EPISODE 111: Why Congestion Pricing Matters with Diana Lind



Hello, Dear Enlistees:

If congestion pricing is the White Whale of New York City transportation policy then I might be Captain Ahab. Back in 2...

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BONUS: Coach Balto's Bike Bus Lessons

Hello all! I'm super excited to share this bonus episode with you all. While working on Episode 110, Back to School with the Bike Bus, I spoke with Sam Balto, a phys ed teacher in Portland, Oregon, who goes by View Post

We want to hear about your wins!

Hello, friends!

It's hard to believe, but our 5th Anniversary is coming up. Yep, we launched the podcast in September of 2018 and here we are five years later. Thank you for coming along for the ride and making it all possible!

On the heels of our recent episode on the Bike Bus, we want to celebrate more success stories in the war on cars. 2023-09-11 16:01:23 +0000 UTC View Post

Episode 110: Back to School on the Bike Bus

Greetings! I hope you had a great summer and were able to get out and have some fun.

We are celebrating the return to school with a look at the bike bus movement that is rapidly growing around the globe.


If you’ve never heard of a bike bus—or a bicibús, as it’s known in th...

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EPISODE 109: Inclusive Transportation with Veronica O. Davis

Hello supporters of The War on Cars!

In her new book, Inclusive Transportation: A Manifesto for Repairing Divided Communities, Veronica O. Davis — the Director of Transportation and Drainage Operations for the city of Houston, Texas — takes a hard look at the wa...

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BONUS: Chaos in the Bike Lane with Aaron Gordon

Hello!

For this month's Patreon-only bonus episode, we welcomed journalist Aaron Gordon back to The War on Cars. Aaron was previously a guest on episode 63, "The Emperor's New Tunnel." 

Recently, Aaron wrote an essay for his newsletter titled 2023-08-08 10:01:02 +0000 UTC View Post

BONUS: Live from New York!

Hello, Patreon supporters!

For this bonus episode of the podcast, we are finally releasing our live show, recorded way back in November 2022 at Caveat on Manhattan's Lower East Side. It was a really fun night with a sold-out crowd of 120 friends and fans of the podcast. We loved seeing everyone and were grateful to Caveat for inviting us.

2023-07-25 10:01:02 +0000 UTC View Post

Episode 108: Traffication with Paul Donald

Dear Patreon folks,

On this episode I talk with conservation scientist Paul Donald about his ground-breaking new book, Traffication: How Cars Destroy Nature and What We Can Do About It. I think it's one of the most important books of the last few years in its documentation of the existential threats posed to nature by the car.

2023-07-18 10:01:02 +0000 UTC View Post

SPECIAL: Freeway Exit

Hello, Patreon friends:

Please enjoy this special presentation of the first episode of Freeway Exit, a six-part series produced by award-winning reporter Andrew Bowen of KPBS Public Media in San Diego, California. We think it is re...

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EPISODE 107: Is It Worth It To Confront Drivers?

Dearest Patreons:

A couple of weeks ago we asked you to share your stories of confrontations with drivers and, wow, did you deliver. Thanks to everyone who sent in voicemails. We received loads of great contributions and Episode 107 is the result...


Have you ever been walking ac...

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BONUS: Inside Automotive Journalism with Bob Sorokanich

Hello, Patrons of The War on Cars!

Have you ever wondered what the reporters who cover the auto industry think about oversized SUVs and pickups and whether the fever for these gas-guzzling, space-hogging, planet-heating and people-killing monstrosities will ever break? Bob Sorokanich has some opinions.

2023-06-20 10:01:59 +0000 UTC View Post

Confronting Drivers: We Want Your Stories!

UPDATE: We are all set for submissions. We recorded this episode last week. Listen for it soon. Thanks!

Hi all,

For an upcoming bonus episode we're going to tackle a question that everyone who walks, runs, rolls or bikes deals with from time to time: what to do in the moment when you have an experience with a bad driver.

Have you ever been cut off by ...

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EPISODE 106: Nick Offerman

Hello, friends of The War on Cars!

You know how sometimes we tweet "Welcome to The War on Cars" at notable people who post or say anything we consider to be within the podcast's wheelhouse? Well, not too long ago we did it to the actor, humorist, author and woodworker Nick Offerman.

A while...

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BONUS: Hollywood and Bikes, Take 2

Hello lovely patrons of The War on Cars!

We're closing out Bike Month with a surprise bonus episode — a bonus bonus episode? — that offers Sarah a chance to weigh in on a subject we covered in episode 103, "Why Does Hollywood Hate Bikes?" Sarah unfortunately couldn't join us for that one but had some shows she wanted to talk about, including one that deals specifically with c...

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EPISODE 105: Paved Paradise with Henry Grabar

Hello War on Cars supporters!

We've got a great one for you this week as we welcome Slate staff writer Henry Grabar back to the podcast to discuss his outstanding new book, Paved Paradise: How Parking Explains the World. (Henry previously joined us on episode 82, Pain at the Pump View Post

BONUS: Discovering Oil with Amy Westervelt

Hi, Patreoners:  

We talk a lot about cars here at The War on Cars (big surprise!). But what about that vast flow of seemingly magical dinosaur juice that makes all of those cars go "vroom?" What about oil?    

It can be surprisingly challenging to produce compelling and listenable stories about the fossil fuel industry and all of the environmental, economic, a...

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EPISODE 104: Arrested Mobility with Charles Brown

Hey, War on Cars friends and supporters:

Did you know that in Huntsville, Alabama, it’s illegal to play ball on any street, alley, or sidewalk? And in Lewiston, Maine, pedestrians need to keep to the right half of the crosswalk while crossing the street. In Sioux Falls, South Dakota, bicyclists are strictly prohibited from any kind of “fancy riding.” If these laws sound vague, arbit...

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BONUS: Into the Fold with Brompton's Will Butler-Adams

Hello, Patreon Supporters!

On our last episode, we mentioned the brief cameo that a Brompton folding bicycle had on season 2 of Ted Lasso and why that was a very deliberate choice meant to convey something special about the character who rides it, Dr. Sharon Fieldstone.

For this bonus episode, I talked with Brompton's Managing Director, Will Butler-Adams, about the chance m...

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EPISODE 103: Why Does Hollywood Hate Bikes?

Hello, supporters of The War on Cars!

Winning the war on cars isn't merely a matter of changing policies or installing a few bikes lanes — it's also about winning hearts and minds. But doing that is made a heckuva lot more difficult when movies and TV shows use riding a bicycle as shorthand for being a complete loser, totally immature, or an utter failure.

2023-04-11 10:01:01 +0000 UTC View Post

BONUS: You Can’t Afford to Live Here Because of Cars

Hello, Dear Patreon supporters!

What if we told you that some of the biggest, most exciting, and potentially transformative victories in The War on Cars are being fought and won these days by people working on affordable housing? In this special Patreon-only episode of the podcast we are talking to one of those people -- Matt Lewis, communications director of 2023-03-28 10:01:00 +0000 UTC View Post

EPISODE 102: CONSPIRACY!

Hello Patreon supporters!

Many of you are probably aware of the recent controversies and conspiracies surrounding "15-minute cities," a mundane urban planning concept that's become the latest grist for the culture-war mill.

Something that we probably all see as desirable — the ability to ...

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Episode 101: Feminist City with Leslie Kern

Hello to all you Patreon supporters, new and longstanding!

In our latest episode, we shift the paradigm and ask what it would mean to live in a "feminist city" — and whether that is a goal policymakers should pursue.

Cities have almost always been designed by men, prioritizing men’s needs as defined by the traditional male-female binary. But as scholar and author Leslie Kern wri...

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BONUS: Super Bowl Roundup

Hello, friends of The War on Cars!

For this exclusive bonus episode just for Patreon supporters, we present our annual Super Bowl roundup. It's our yearly look at the big game's car ads, which this time out included Will Ferrell cruising through a post-zombie-apocalyptic Las Vegas in a shiny GMC EV, a heroic "Binky Dad" who drives a KIA Telluride like no one would ever drive one in real l...

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