The War on Cars

Baruch Herzfeld is the CEO and co-founder of PopWheels, where he is working to develop New York City’s first e-bike battery-swapping network. PopWheels aims to solve the growing problem of e-bike battery fires. The company believes that giving e-mobility users a quick, convenient, and safe way to recharge their batteries is absolutely essential to pushing gas-burning cars and trucks out of cities once and for all. But Baruch’s really big idea is this: He is betting that the light, clean, electric transportation fleet of the future is already up and running on the streets of New York City. And it isn’t being brought to us by Big Tech, Big Auto or Elon Musk, it is being driven by tens of thousands of immigrant e-bike delivery workers. What if there is a high-tech urban mobility revolution happening right under our noses, but we can’t see it because the people who are bringing it to our city are mostly invisible to us? ***Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free versions of all our episodes, exclusive bonus content and stickers.*** See The War on Cars LIVE at Caveat on NYC on Wednesday, January 31st. In-person tickets are sold out but you can still catch the livestream!  LINKS: Baruch Herzfeld’s battery-swapping company, PopWheels: Stop Charging, Start Swapping Mayor Adams Launches Lithium-ion Battery-Charging Pilot for Delivery Workers to Safely Charge in Public, NYC.gov, December 5, 2023 When will NYC do something about e-bike fire deaths? Nicole Gelinas for the New York Post, November 19, 2023 F.D.N.Y. Commissioner Blames E-Commerce Giants in Deadly Battery Fires, by Michael Rothfeld for the New York Times, November 13, 2023 E-bike charging stations coming to NYCHA in wake of deadly lithium-ion battery fires, New York Daily News, June 25, 2023  Opinion: E-bike Battery Regulation Isn’t Anti-immigrant or Anti-worker. It’s Common Sense. By Baruch Herzfeld in City Limits, November 14, 2022 Brooklyn’s Bicycle Man Uses Two Wheels To Bring Hasids and Hipsters Together, by Nathaniel Popper for The Forward, August 29, 2009 ***** Register for the Winter Cycling Congress, February 22 – 24 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It will be freezing and we will be there! Get your merch at The War on Cars store.  Find us on Instagram, Threads, Bluesky, Mastodon and Facebook.  Follow and please review us on Apple Podcasts. This episode was reported, produced and edited by Aaron Naparstek. Our theme music is by Nathaniel Goodyear. TheWarOnCars.org!

Happy New Year! We’re kicking off 2024 by bringing you our conversation with David Zipper, one of the hardest-working analysts on the transportation scene today. You may be familiar with David from his writing at Bloomberg CityLab, Slate and Fast Company, where he relentlessly covers road safety, climate change, and the future of micromobility.  We talked with David about the excesses of the auto industry, our road fatality crisis, the absurd way speed limits are determined on American streets, and whether we might ever be able to swap out our bloated SUVs for electric golf carts. Or if that’s too much to ask, will cities at least start charging people more for driving massive glacier melters? LINKS: You can find out all about David Zipper’s work, along with links to his writing, at his website. See David on NBCDFW’s excellent series about why Dallas is such a deadly place to drive. ***Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free versions of all our episodes, exclusive bonus content and stickers.*** This episode is produced with support from Cleverhood. Listen to the episode for the latest Cleverhood discount code. See The War on Cars LIVE at Caveat on NYC on Wednesday, January 31st. Tickets are going fast! Register for the Winter Cycling Congress, February 22 - 24 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. We will be there! Buy official War on Cars merch at our store.  Find us on Bluesky, Mastodon, Instagram, Facebook and Threads. Follow and review us on Apple Podcasts.  This episode was recorded by Josh Wilcox at the Brooklyn Podcasting Studio. It was edited by Ali Lemer. Our theme music is by Nathaniel Goodyear. TheWarOnCars.org  

Last month the three hosts told their origin stories, or how they first became aware of the problems associated with cars and automobile dependency. Our stories included everything from lessons learned during early driving lessons to our individual experiences living in car-dependent places. The response to that episode was so great that we put out the call to our Patreon supporters to tell us their origin stories. We heard from people from all over the world — including a few friends and former guests of the podcast — who all wanted to share how they were radicalized into The War on Cars. ***This is a preview of a Patreon-exclusive bonus episode. For complete access to this and all of our bonus content, become a Patreon supporter of The War on Cars.***

Since 1964, the Hess Corporation has released a toy truck for the holiday season, an annual tradition that’s highly anticipated by children and collectors alike. Models have included gas tankers, fire trucks, motorcycles, RVs, race cars, and even a Space Shuttle, almost all in the fossil fuel company’s iconic green-and-white color scheme.  But this year, perhaps reflecting the times, the Hess Corporation has released a Police Truck and Cruiser, “a specialized law enforcement response team that will inspire and unleash the inner hero in everyone.” We’re not sure what kind of trouble is brewing in Santa’s workshop, but the truck looks like what would arrive in response to a terrorist attack. Meanwhile, the cruiser, the smaller truck-within-the-truck, is an “armored-response vehicle” that gives off big Cybertruck vibes… if the Cybertruck included a battering ram and could actually work off-road. We discuss the 2023 Hess Truck and what it says about the state of the world. Plus, since we're not the target audience for this toy or its marketing, we hear a kid explain what makes the Hess Truck fun and cool. **This is a preview of a Patreon-exclusive bonus episode. For complete access to this and all of our bonus content, become a Patreon supporter of The War on Cars.** 2023 Hess Truck ad. (YouTube) Learn more about the Hess Truck (Hess) They Hess Truck's Back And It's Worse Than Ever (Steve DaSilva, Jalopnik) TheWarOnCars.org

In his new book, Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping The Future of Our Planet, independent conservation journalist Ben Goldfarb writes about how roads and cars are wreaking havoc on nature across the globe. He reports back about the people trying to save everything from butterflies to deer to wallabies to salamanders from the destructive power of motordom. Plus, he helps us analyze a couple of egregious ads that show how humans use roads to assert our dominion over the natural world…to our own eventual detriment. Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free versions of all our episodes, exclusive bonus content and stickers. This episode is produced with support from Cleverhood. Listen to the episode for the latest Cleverhood discount code. LINKS: Pick up Ben Goldfarb’s Crossings: How Road Ecology Is Shaping The Future of Our Planet at our official Bookshop.org page. See The War on Cars LIVE at Caveat on NYC on Wednesday, January 31st. Tickets are going fast! Register for the Winter Cycling Congress, February 22-24 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. We will be there! Buy official War on Cars merch at our store.  Find us on Bluesky, Mastodon, Instagram, Facebook and Threads. Follow and review us on Apple Podcasts.  TheWarOnCars.org

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has declared it’s time to end what he calls “the war on motorists.” First, the Conservative Party leader announced he was delaying the UK’s commitment to ban the sale of new gas-powered cars. He followed that with what he called his “plan for motorists,” which would severely restrict local efforts to implement low-traffic neighborhoods, 20 mph speed limits, bus-only lanes, and other policies intended to benefit people walking, cycling, and taking transit. Finally, he scrapped a major portion of HS2, a high-speed rail line linking some of the UK’s biggest cities. So… what the hell is happening in the UK? With similar setbacks in Berlin, Madrid, New York and elsewhere, is this part of a broader global backsliding? Are we losing the The War on Cars or is the prime minister just grasping at culture-war straws? The Guardian’s Peter Walker returns to the podcast to help us figure it all out. ***Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free versions of all our episodes, exclusive bonus content and stickers.*** This episode is produced with support from Cleverhood. Listen to the episode for the latest Cleverhood discount code. SHOW NOTES: “Sunak ‘backs drivers,’ announces scaling back of HS2, and delays the UK’s ban on gas-powered vehicles by five years. (Peter Walker & colleagues, The Guardian) Rishi Sunak says he’s “slamming the brakes on the war on motorists.” (The Sun) King Charles III makes his first “King’s Speech.” (YouTube) British Transport Secretary Mark Harper on “sinister” 15-minute-city plans. (The Independent) Hear Peter Walker discuss his book, The Miracle Pill, on this Patreon bonus episode of The War on Cars. Pick up Peter Walker’s How Cycling Can Save the World at our official Bookshop.org page. See The War on Cars LIVE at Caveat on NYC on Wednesday, January 31st. Tickets are going fast! Register for the Winter Cycling Congress, February 22-24 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. We will be there! Buy official War on Cars merch at our store.  Find us on Bluesky, Mastodon, Instagram, Facebook and Threads. Follow and review us on Apple Podcasts.  TheWarOnCars.org

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, writing…and ultimately, The War on Cars podcast as you know it today. You’ll learn how Doug dealt with a soul-crushing commute in Atlanta and how Sarah drove recklessly on the California coast. You’ll also hear the words of wisdom Aaron’s father imparted during their first driving lesson. ***This is a preview of a Patreon-exclusive bonus episode. For complete access to this and all of our bonus content, become a Patreon supporter of The War on Cars.***

Since he was elected mayor in 2020, John Bauters has gained an international reputation for his work to transform transportation and housing in the tiny city of Emeryville, which is wedged between Oakland and Berkeley on the shores of San Francisco Bay. Emeryville, population 13,000, is only one square mile in area. But it’s home to some big employers, including Pixar, and several big box stores. It also has I-80 blasting through it, and it is a major hub for Amtrak, regional rail, and freight rail. It’s a challenging environment in which to create a green city with a great active transportation network. But that’s exactly what Bauters has been working toward for his whole term. We visited with him, rode some of the great bike and park network that Emeryville has been building, and talked about the kind of political will that’s necessary to make real change. ***Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free versions of all our episodes, exclusive bonus content and stickers.*** This episode is produced with support from Cleverhood. Listen to the episode for the latest Cleverhood discount code. LINKS: Follow John Bauters on X, if you’re still there. Really. It’s worth it. Ride along with Mayor Bauters and Streetfilms through the streets of Emeryville. (YouTube) ‘Why the mayor of tiny Emeryville matters’ (The Real Deal) Register for the Winter Cycling Congress, February 22-24 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. We will be there! Buy official War on Cars merch at our store.  Find us on Mastodon, Bluesky, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, and whatever godforsaken new social media platform pops up next.  Follow and review us on Apple Podcasts.  TheWarOnCars.org  

In his new book, Dark PR: How Corporate Disinformation Harms Our Health and the Environment, Grant Ennis — a lecturer at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia — identifies the "nine devious frames" that corporations such as automobile manufacturers and road builders use to advance their interests, manipulate the public and maintain a status quo that harms human health and the environment. Dark PR is a thought-provoking book that shines a light on the tactics used by major industries to lock in an unhealthy, unsafe and unsustainable status quo. Ennis offers some food for thought for safe streets advocates as we try to improve our world and fight back against these powerful interests.   Special thanks to Cleverhood for their support. For the latest discount code on the best rain gear for cycling and walking, listen to the episode.   ***Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free episodes, exclusive bonus content, stickers, and more.***   LINKS:   Buy Dark PR as well as titles by other podcast guests at our Bookshop.org page.   Watch "Human Traffic Signals," a PSA from Buick of Shanghai.   Here's GM's vision of driving in 1976... as imagined in 1956.   The European Automobile Manufacturers Association thinks the solutions to traffic safety are pretty complex. Buy official War on Cars merch at our store.  Find us on Mastodon, Bluesky, Instagram, Facebook, and Threads. Follow and review The War on Cars on Apple Podcasts. It helps people find us!  TheWarOnCars.org

This year, 2023, marks the hundredth anniversary since chemical engineer Thomas Midgley, Jr. made the discoveries that led to the invention of leaded gasoline. Of all the many harms that the automobile has caused 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 lead in the 1920s. But adding small amounts of it to motor fuel made internal combustion engines work better, and that made it possible to turn the automobile into a viable mass market product. As a result, pretty much every American born between 1960 and 1980 was, to some extent, poisoned by lead. In this episode, bestselling author Steven Johnson joins Aaron Naparstek to talk about Midgley, his legacy, and what his story can teach us about our technological inventions and their future consequences.   ***Support The War on Cars on Patreon and receive access to ad-free versions of all our episodes, exclusive bonus content and stickers.*** This episode is produced with support from Cleverhood. Listen to the episode for the latest Cleverhood discount code. LINKS: “The Man Who Broke the World” by Steven Johnson for the New York Times Magazine, March 15, 2023.  Find more of Steven Johnson’s work on his website. Subscribe to Steven’s newsletter, Adjacent Possible. Find all thirteen of Steven’s books here. War on Cars fans will enjoy The Ghost Map -- it’s a page-turner of a mystery/thriller about urban planning and epidemiology. You can buy Steven’s books at our Bookshop.org store.  Interested in digging deeper into the history of leaded gasoline? Check out Toxic Truth by Lydia Denworth.  Buy official War on Cars merch at our store.  Find us on Mastodon, Bluesky, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, and whatever godforsaken new social media platform pops up next.  Follow and review us on Apple Podcasts.  TheWarOnCars.org