The price of life soars, with dues to the automobile, petrol and insurance industries

It is debated whether the Americans, the French or the Germans came up with the automobile, but by the turn of the 20th century it was the rising technology promising discovery and expansion to all who could afford it. Skipping the details of progress through the wars, and majorly the automatisation of production thanks to Henry Ford and the model T, we arrive to the post war period, and to a world needing to be rebuilt. The VW Beetle and Citroen 2CV start to popularise the access of the car to the general population and the growing accessibility of fuel, along with the exponential economic growth of the middle-class household, build the stepping stones for a vicious circle that has caused an alienment between people and their communities, to the profit of only certain industrial individuals.

As a perceived new tool of freedom for the common family, and industrial source of opportunity, the car was quickly pitted as the centre of urban planning, and our lives. The popularisation of the car, along with some major lobbying from industrial individuals and states, swiftly and drastically changed the western world’s urban landscape, with the construction of major national motorways, and the disastrous abandonment of railway lines. Indeed, this popular change was made possible by aggressive lobbying from automobile and petrol companies, swaying both the government’s and people’s opinion. This urban development encourages the adoption of cars, which in turn accelerates the construction of the road network, hence the vicious circle, profiting massively to industrial tycoons. In fact, General Motors and ExxonMobil become the two wealthiest enterprises of the time.

It is highlighted by the start of the materialistic mindset of an all-electro-mechanised solution to life, thought process distinctly characteristic of a period of time the French would call the glorious thirties. And the most important, most prized of these solutions is the auto. All events become organised around the car. The development of superstores for example, accessible by large automobile roads, away from the city centre and surrounded by car parks, become one of the staples of the start to automobile dependence. The car allowed for people to live further out from the city than ever before, and achieve ownership of many families dream home of a detached house. The automotive culture is characterised by a formidable urban spread, and not owning a car becomes the symbol of social downgrading. The generation of the glorious thirties believe it should enjoy with no hindrance all of humanities progress.

And then follows an exodus of city residents to the suburbs and the diminishment of small and local commerce, and for just cause. Life in the centre is becoming unbearable. The rapid expansion of suburbia, and the corresponding car usage increase results in those vehicles blocking the roads. The cars used for all commuting produce both noise and air pollution. The number of residents in centres is diminishing as they run for their dreamish detached home, encouraged by the ease of city access thanks to huge transversals ripping through communities and destroying local urban zones. This exodus then drives people to use the car more, which reinforces car infrastructure and so on. It’s no wonder therefore to learn that the automotive and petrol lobbyists where behind these movements.

Society starts associating progress to production. Produce to consume more, and consume to produce more. And with the search of progress, comes cost cutting and often, privatisation, with the belief that a private company, lead by the choice of the free market will inherently drive innovation. Only, the privatisation of natural monopolies is monitored closely by those who see it as competition, and in a search of only profit, many lead their service to general quality worsening, often utilising government bailouts to reap more reward. Interestingly, in many domains the private service becomes more expensive than when it was public. We can in fact follow the trends of global liberalism by the study of automobile development. A conversation perhaps for another article.

The issues behind the mass urban sprawl, abandonment of residential locality, and the vicious circle of car dependence are therefore important. The death of most of our local way of life, juxtaposed with the rise of great surface superstores, entrenched by the dependence to the car for day-to-day activities leads to not being able to live without having a car. Hours of commuting are necessary for all daily activities, which results in a general deterioration of physical and mental health, and less personal time, which becomes exaggerated by the rise of unsolvable traffic. We can even observe a lessening of personal freedom for the many who can’t use or afford to use the car and are therefore cloistered in their homes, and a limitation of personal choice of movement, with all other options than the car becoming so very inconvenient. The monopolisation of road usage has led to a general deterioration of safety as the car is given quasi-regal priority, and public transport, without clear hubs to build lines on, falls short of expectations. To give way to roads and suburbs filled with detached houses and perfectly mowed lawns we observe the deterioration of green spaces, natural wildlife and fauna. In addition, smaller sized independent commerce who cannot be active on large scale, die out in the face of large surface corporations, unable to compete within the economy of scale. And the price of life soars, with dues to the automobile, the petrol and the insurance industries. There was a time where access to all first necessities was achievable within a ten-minute walk, and these issues did not exist.

And we are now aware of a greater existential threat, that of global warming and climate deregulation. As we aim for two tonnes of carbon equivalent emissions yearly from an embarrassing five tonnes, we must make concessions, and also realise the change to EVs will not be sufficient to solve this problem, or those listed in the paragraph above. Indeed, the electric automobile is not here to save the planet, but rather to save the automotive industry. We are Icarus, and we are headed for the sun.

I might add that these threats are greater in Guernsey, as space is against us and we cannot use it so frivolously for detached housing and urban sprawl. The roads are also smaller, and cannot cope with the general size augmentation of vehicles, and the dangerous popularisation of SUVs. Rather curious that we have let it get to this place, as one would have thought a small island would have known not to abandon a local life. The last 50 years of carefree planning are reaping its non-rewards today, as everyone can see, and as everyone complains about. Yet, hypocritically, none are ready to abandon their auto.

One day the car will be unendurable, our wings will have melted. Let us plan before that day.

PAUL MARTIN

Vale