kevinapex: blog 
kevinapex's blog
cars, cars, everywhere are cars - repost
Published Jul. 18, 2008
I am reposting since I have bad habit of posting these things late at night. Thanks for those who commented last night.
Can anyone who lives in this area really say they have seen a reduction in traffic with the current high gas prices? I confess that I am a bit hypersensitive to automobile traffic, not because of any sort of pompous environmental militancy, I just don’t like to drive and I view the automobile as a necessary evil in today’s culture. If I could give up my car I would, but I concede that there are few alternatives. It just appears to me that folks are driving as much and as aggressively as ever.
I’ve made some effort to cut down on my driving, mainly via telecommuting and occasionally taking the bus, but it is not always easy and I realize for some people it is next to impossible. That said I am still amazed at the volume of traffic I see at all hours and in all places. I am also dismayed at the way people continue to press the petal to the metal in parking lots, at intersections and even on backloads.
While walking the dog in pedestrian friendly Apex I am always encountering drivers who at best view me as an inconvenience when I have the audacity to need to cross a street, even if there is a pedestrian crossing signal.
I was crossing the street in the RTP this week and a guy gunned it almost as if he meant to try to run me over. In another recent incident I was nearly run over by a man in a huge SUV towing a boat as it speeded around a curve on a single lane road with a 15 mph speed limit. He gave me a nasty look for being in his way.
On a recent Saturday my wife and I drove to Dunn to visit her mother in the hospital and we both were stunned at the volume of traffic at every point of the trip. There are still plenty of big cars and most have single riders in them apparently in big hurries to get somewhere important.
My conclusion is that all this talk about people changing their driving habits is mostly hot air. $4.00 a gallon hurts, and maybe some people are holding off buying large SUVs and taking shorter vacation trips, but the cost of gas still isn’t high enough to alter the day to day driving most of us do. There is also no evidence in my mind of any change(e.g. slower acceleration, more modest speeds) in the way people drive their vehicles. For the most part it’s still go go go and get out of my way!
I think the public is toughing it out and assuming that the prices to drop again like they did after the last oil crisis. I will admit that I do not think a return to cheap oil will be a good thing for this nation in the long term. It's not that I am wishing economic hardship on people, I just want us as a nation to find an alternative to oil.
Thanks!
close8 Comments
(18 votes) suspect in fatal hit-and-run surrenders
(13 votes) man pleads guilty in 2005 stabbing death
(10 votes) granville mom disappears, house catches fire
(8 votes) hanna heads for carolinas
(6 votes) hanna's approach yields tornado watches
Welcome to GOLO, where WRAL.com visitors can comment on stories and create profile pages, blogs and photo galleries.
You must be a registered WRAL.com user to use these tools. Click here to register or log in.
GOLO member since July 17, 2008
July 18, 2008 9:27 a.m.
GOLO member since October 2, 2007
July 18, 2008 9:24 a.m.
GOLO member since July 3, 2007
July 18, 2008 9:19 a.m.
No, this area doesn't really have much of a traffic problem to speak of.
GOLO member since June 20, 2008
July 18, 2008 9:12 a.m.
GOLO member since November 14, 2007
July 18, 2008 9:10 a.m.
GOLO member since October 18, 2007
July 18, 2008 9:06 a.m.
GOLO member since October 5, 2007
July 18, 2008 9:05 a.m.
GOLO member since July 10, 2007
July 18, 2008 9:04 a.m.
Please log in to add comment.