Stop, Drop and Roll

08 August 2007 | Alameda Community, Alameda Community Development Forum | John Knox White

For those just joining us, here’s this week’s conceit. Standing in a group of 5-8 people on Friday night at Rhythmix Cultural Works, I actively listened (as opposed to stood in a corner and craned my neck) to a conversation about traffic in Alameda. During the course of the chat, it was announced (and seconded) that nobody will ever change their travel habits. This week, we’re spending one day on each of five assumptions that would have to be true in order for this statement to hold up.

Wednesday, the third assumption: “There are no external factors that might change [the balance that currently drives current choices].”

Recent studies have shown an increase in transit ridership over the last year of about 10%. This appears to be based mostly on the impact of skyrocketing gas prices, but may have some minimal basis in an awakening global warming awareness as well.

The cost of driving is the number one indicator of what choices people make when heading out the door. First on the list of transportation choice is available free parking at their destination. Free parking is expensive for the cities that provide it and it encourages traffic.

(Quick aside: last night at the council/CIC meeting, I believe the council approved a parking plan that has the new parking structure not charging for parking after 6pm, when it’s actually going to be used! We have a way to go in fulfilling the 1990 City of Alameda General Plan goal of deemphasizing the automobile, we appear to be going out of our way to encourage increased traffic).

With gas prices increasing, we are quickly reaching the pricing level that studies have predicted will see significant behavioral change. Studies range between $4 and $5 for this change to start taking place. Of course, if we continue to cut transit service, there will be no options available for people to make the change. This shows the proposed state budget shift of $1.3 Billion in Public Transportation funds a tragedy.

So as not to be insincere of this topic, I’ll leave this post with the rather depressing results of a study on the cognitive dissonance created in people between their concern for the environment and their personal transportation choices.

Recent studies have found that when people’s environmental mindset bumps up against the way they travel (aka driving), people change their environmental mindset instead of consider an increase in inconvenience to their travel behavior. Aka, personal convenience trumps environmental stewardship.

There is hope, a 1992 report from UC Berkeley showed that getting people to commit to lowering their water-use before talking to them about the length of their showers lead to a change in behavior (shorter showers). What appears to be important is getting people to commit to an action before talking to them about what that change would be. Once the commitment is made, then people are willing to look at their behavior.