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 delays ban on gas-powered cars, restricts low-traffic neighborhoods, and scraps HS2 project. Is this a global setback? Broken promises impact transportation and climate change. UK government's plan for motorists opposes environmental initiatives. Motivations behind the Chancellor's stance: Labour voters or Tory base? Political climate and need for alternatives. Government trust, austerity, and potential solutions.

In this bonus episode, the hosts reflect on their personal experiences with driving, discussing their first lessons, reckless behaviors, and the lasting impact of their parents' emphasis on driving safely.

John Bauters, America's Bike Mayor, discusses transforming transportation and housing in Emeryville, a challenging yet vibrant city. They explore generational issues, reclaiming the city's history, and the importance of living authentically. Also, discover the Winter Cycling Congress and get a discount code from Cleverhood.

Grant Ennis, a lecturer at Monash University, discusses his book "Dark PR: How Corporate Disinformation Harms Our Health and the Environment." He reveals the deceptive tactics used by automobile manufacturers and road builders, exploring the denialism and deceptive frames in the industry's approach to road deaths. Ennis also tackles the impact of car dependency on civil society and democracy. This thought-provoking podcast sheds light on how major industries manipulate the public to maintain an unhealthy and unsafe status quo.

The podcast delves into the harmful effects of leaded gasoline and chlorofluorocarbons, discussing their unintended consequences on health and the environment. It explores the impact of leaded gasoline on the automobile industry and its detrimental effects on human health. The chapter also discusses the unintended consequences of technological advancements, such as air conditioning and refrigerators, and the clash between anarchists and the police in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The tragic death of Thomas Midgely and its allegorical nature are also explored.

In this bonus episode just for Patreon supporters of The War on Cars, we do a quick news roundup before getting to the thing that matters most: WINNING. Last month we reached out to our liteners and asked them to send us their wins, from policy and infrastructure victories to cultural changes they helped usher in, even at just the individual level. Let's face it: it's a tough world out there so celebrating victories big and small is really important. Thanks to all of you, we are making progress in The War on Cars one parking space at a time. ***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.***

Congestion pricing in Manhattan, future of private cars in cities, opposition to congestion pricing, potential paradigm shift, challenges of implementation, negative environmental consequences of widening highways, future of transportation with self-driving cars and electric vehicles.

While working on Episode 110, Back to School with the Bike Bus, we spoke with Sam Balto, a phys ed teacher in Portland, Oregon, who goes by @CoachBalto and who's become one of the most visible advocates in the global movement for active transportation for kids. We used some of his comments in that episode, but our conversation was so juicy we knew we wanted to share it in full. Sam does a great job of explaining why bike buses are so much fun and so good for kids, and why you might find yourself tearing up when you watch his videos: "We want our children to thrive. And the bike bus movement is sort of the first story of children thriving since the pandemic." Maybe you'll be inspired to start a bike bus or walking school bus where you live! ***This is a preview of a Patreon bonus episode. To hear the full episode and for complete access to all our exclusive bonus content become a Patreon supporter of The War on Cars.***