Join for free
Page 1 of 3 1 2 3 >
OldGreyFox's Avatar
OldGreyFox
Chatterbox
OldGreyFox is offline
South Yorkshire
Joined: Feb 2015
Posts: 21,202
OldGreyFox is male  OldGreyFox has posted at least 25 times and has been a member for 3 months or more 
 
21-05-2021, 12:18 PM
1

The Automobile, friend or foe?

Nothing has changed society and our way of life in the UK as much as the Automobile.
In the year that I was born there were 4 million registered cars on UK roads. That has shot up to a staggering 34 million by 2010, and is increasing every year. That’s half a car for every man, woman, and child in this country. We have managed for well over 2000 years without a personal means of travel other than a horse or donkey reserved for the rich and gentry. We were healthier, slimmer, fitter, and largely illness free. We ate fresh grown food produced either at home or within a few miles radius of our homes. We worked within walking distance of home, shopped in the village supporting local businesses, and we knew practically every one of our neighbours. Survival of the fittest, natural selection and not much need for the small towns we now accept as the local hospitals. We looked after our old folk at home without the need for care and nursing homes, just the occasional visit from the doctor.

So what happened? Initially a motor car was bought for pleasure, opening up the country to otherwise inaccessible or cost prohibitive places, also the choice of the place of work could be extended, and shopping could also be done further of field, with supermarkets buying in bulk to out compete the local shops, and opening out of town places with lots of free parking. This has since seen the demise of towns and cities due to limited and expensive parking, and roads not really designed to accommodate the motor car.

The pollution and congestion now being seen on our roads is causing more problems than Covid, and just simply cannot continue at its present rate. I’m not even going to mention the convoy of lorries stretching from Dover to Edinburgh, which are accumulating at an unsustainable rate. There are some big changes going to have to take place in the future and regression is in my opinion the only way forward. Return to community life, and grow your own, and support local farmers and industry by keeping it local where ever we can.
swimfeeders
Chatterbox
swimfeeders is offline
Shropshire
Joined: Oct 2014
Posts: 24,056
swimfeeders is male  swimfeeders has posted at least 25 times and has been a member for 3 months or more 
 
21-05-2021, 12:25 PM
2

Re: The Automobile, friend or foe?

Hi

I have a very fuel efficient diesel.

|I am not going to be changing it any time soon.

It is almost 10 years old, has done 77,000 miles and will last me out.

Going electric does not make sense for me.
Ullabi
Senior Member
Ullabi is offline
.
Joined: May 2021
Posts: 456
Ullabi is female 
 
22-05-2021, 12:17 PM
3

Re: The Automobile, friend or foe?

Being wheelchair dependent I rely on my car to get me everywhere. Taking the bus to go shopping for example is out of the question for me. No plans on getting an electric car as there are so few places here where you can recharge the batteries. I'll stick to my low petrol consumption car as long as I can
Dachs
Senior Member
Dachs is offline
Germany
Joined: Feb 2021
Posts: 224
Dachs is male  Dachs has posted at least 25 times and has been a member for 3 months or more 
 
22-05-2021, 12:25 PM
4

Re: The Automobile, friend or foe?

Neither friend nor foe, I'd say, but individual mobility has become a necessity to some extent for which a car is not needed, though, except in rural areas. What you wrote about "the good old days" sounds a bit romanticised to me and is not due to the spread of automobiles alone.
"Healthier, slimmer, fitter"? Doesn't life expectancy at that time tell us a different story? Didn't people drop like flies?
"Fresh grown food"? In summer perhaps for those living in rural areas but it was not what we'd call a variety of fruit and vegetables. In winter people were starving and had a very monotonous diet that was not fresh at all. I'd say people had to work and shop locally and, thus, were also heavily dependent on employers and traders and at their mercy. I'm not in favour of applying the survival of the fittest- concept to human society. We had that once and the consequences are known.

The concentration process in the retail sector was not only caused by the automobile but would have happened anyway. The next big step in that process is online trading which was not induced by the automobile either.
The changes in life-style that you outlined were chiefly a result of the development of society with more and more capital being available and making inventions and changes possible but also of people's convenience and expectations.

I agree that big changes will be unavoidable and ought to be implemented very soon. One element of that can be buying locally wherever possible. Why would apples have to be shipped all around the globe from NZ if they can be provided by local farmers? Would consumers be ready to accept ugly or less standardised food in this case so that we take a step closer to an environmentally sustainable food supply chain? Why would beer brewed in the north of a country also have to be offered in the south transported there by lorries? "Because we want it that way and there's a demand for it", people might say. Here it is again: people's attitude and expectations.
As for individual mobility, if it's to be maintained and I agree it is, then we need to find ways of reducing the carbon footprint. A mix of using electric cars, public transport, or e-bikes/bicycles besides conventional cars seems to be the solution for the foreseeable future.
Longdogs's Avatar
Longdogs
Chatterbox
Longdogs is offline
SW England
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 43,957
Longdogs is male  Longdogs has posted at least 25 times and has been a member for 3 months or more 
 
22-05-2021, 04:39 PM
5

Re: The Automobile, friend or foe?

Originally Posted by Ullabi ->
Being wheelchair dependent I rely on my car to get me everywhere. Taking the bus to go shopping for example is out of the question for me. No plans on getting an electric car as there are so few places here where you can recharge the batteries. I'll stick to my low petrol consumption car as long as I can

Same here Ulla. Is Sweden pushing for all electric cars like the UK is?
Primus1's Avatar
Primus1
Senior Member
Primus1 is offline
York
Joined: Jul 2015
Posts: 4,648
Primus1 is male  Primus1 has posted at least 25 times and has been a member for 3 months or more 
 
22-05-2021, 05:31 PM
6

Re: The Automobile, friend or foe?

I’d say more of a necessity, public transport is a joke , and expensive, folk need to travel more since most of our large employers have disappeared, or scaled down their workforce, cars are greener and safer than they’ve ever been.
LongDriver's Avatar
LongDriver
Senior Member
LongDriver is offline
West Sussex (coastal)
Joined: Sep 2019
Posts: 1,015
LongDriver is male  LongDriver has posted at least 25 times and has been a member for 3 months or more 
 
22-05-2021, 05:47 PM
7

Re: The Automobile, friend or foe?

For my wife and I, there can be no substitute for a gas engine car. Our one is a Suzuki and at zero annual road tax is obviously very fuel efficient. We do not cover a high annual mileage, so our contribution to the rising CO2 levels is minimal. If hydrogen for combustion was readily available, then I would consider the relatively simple conversion from petrol, but I doubt if this will be offered as there is too much big money tied up in electric cars and their batteries.
d00d's Avatar
d00d
Chatterbox
d00d is offline
London, UK
Joined: Jul 2018
Posts: 7,525
d00d is male  d00d has posted at least 25 times and has been a member for 3 months or more 
 
22-05-2021, 07:17 PM
8

Re: The Automobile, friend or foe?

The Automobile, friend or foe?

It was good whilst it lasted.

In the 21st C. we should all be living in high-rise blocks, a room with a view, with conveyor belts to take us here & there. The idea of us living in the sticks with a personal automobile is becoming more no no. There will still be wheels to take us to far flung spots to see how folk used to live, they will be shared/hired. It's not going to happen overnight.
Ullabi
Senior Member
Ullabi is offline
.
Joined: May 2021
Posts: 456
Ullabi is female 
 
22-05-2021, 08:36 PM
9

Re: The Automobile, friend or foe?

Originally Posted by Longdogs ->
Same here Ulla. Is Sweden pushing for all electric cars like the UK is?
No, not pushing but you can get a government subsidy if you buy an electric car. Anyway with the lack of public charging points it's not on the cards as far as I'm concerned.
OldGreyFox's Avatar
OldGreyFox
Chatterbox
OldGreyFox is offline
South Yorkshire
Joined: Feb 2015
Posts: 21,202
OldGreyFox is male  OldGreyFox has posted at least 25 times and has been a member for 3 months or more 
 
22-05-2021, 08:43 PM
10

Re: The Automobile, friend or foe?

Originally Posted by Ullabi ->
Being wheelchair dependent I rely on my car to get me everywhere. Taking the bus to go shopping for example is out of the question for me. No plans on getting an electric car as there are so few places here where you can recharge the batteries. I'll stick to my low petrol consumption car as long as I can
Of course special dispensation on a personal level would be made for the disabled Ullabi....
 
Page 1 of 3 1 2 3 >

Thread Tools


© Copyright 2009, Over50sForum   Contact Us | Over 50s Forum! | Archive | Privacy Statement | Terms of Use | Top

Powered by vBulletin Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.