A Brief History of Motion: From the Wheel, to the Car, to What Comes Next

For decades, the automobile provided a pathway to economic opportunity and upward mobility. But now the negative consequences — including a reliance on fossil fuels and increased emissions of greenhouse gases; a dramatic increase in the rate of deaths caused by cars[x]; the disconnection of local community and weakening of local economies; the rise... See more

Cars and the FutureA little over a year ago I explained in Cars and the Future that there were three changes happening in the personal transportation industry simultaneously:Drivetrains were changing from the internal combustion engine to electricCar operation was moving from human-based to computer-based (i.e. self-driving cars)Ownership was shift... See more

Beyond the prospect of fewer cars per capita, there could also be a significant threat to luxury automotive brands. If you don’t own the car and will use it for only a single trip, you have little reason to care what make or model it is. Cars could cease to be status items, and the automobile market might well become commoditized. For these reasons

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Among the many challenges in a capitalist society, it’s hard to imagine a way to profit from a car-free future. Governments don’t profit from providing public transportation to citizens. It’s a service, a reflection of our commitment to the social good. Private transportation — cars — are a different animal: hundreds of industries profit from it, f... See more