Here is a question posed by Diane Sugimura (Director of Seattle DPD) a few years ago at the Urban Sustainability Forum. What do you think a sustainable Seattle will look like? Answer, a snow covered one. It might sound odd but think about your experience over the past few days.
When it snows Seattleites go out and walk as a means or transportation. They say hi and look each other in the face. They stop and talk to their neighbors. They are kind to each other, helping out random strangers. Life slows down. Seattleites shop at local stores. Seattleites reclaim the streetscape, transforming it into open space for life, joy and people, not a car. The city becomes peaceful. People walk to work. They walk to see friends. Cars are parked. Everyone stays closer to home.
Essentially we are forced off carbon intensive transportation. If you can’t walk there it is probably too far. This includes buses too. They help but transit really isn’t the solution, land use is.
This was the scene on Capitol Hill and lots of other neighborhoods around the city. Hugeass and the SLOG already touched on this. Snow blurs the streetscape and allows for a more democratic allocation of space. Cars are forced to slow or stop and people take over. People stop simply passing through space but rather become participants in that space. They engage the space and become invested in it. Everyone is forced to question our obsession with hybermobility.
Yes I know the analogy doesn’t completely hold true but I think it is very instructive in how we need to think about sustainability and transportation. The boundaries need to pushed even more. Next time you think about these topics ask yourself, is this something that I could imagine in a snowy seattle?
I think it’s a great time to think about how you’ve felt over the past few days. If you’re proud that you’ve been able to continue life, and have enjoyed the community feeling over the past few days, then you probably live a pretty walkable lifestyle. If you feel isolated and frustrated by not being able to get to work or are now living on canned vegetables, then it’s probably time to consider moving before we reach peak oil.