Owning a Car in Europe?

The lead story in today’s New York Times, “Across Europe, Irking Drivers is Urban Policy,” illustrates how much more the environmental mindset has taken control there compared to the United States. Europe is making real progress in reducing its carbon dioxide footprint, often by adopting policies in clear contradiction to the U.S.

In Europe, they try to make owning a car an unpleasant experience to encourage pedestrian traffic and use of the public transportation system. While new buildings in the U.S. must meet a certain minimum number of parking spaces to comply with zoning law, in Europe they cap the parking spaces. In Europe, extra red lights are placed in cities, and the green period is reduced to ensure pedestrians do not have to wait more than 20 seconds to cross the street. Certain areas are entirely closed off to traffic; other streets are limited to low emission vehicles. Trams often have the power to turn green lights for cars into their favor.

Of course, some would say that with gasoline at $8 per gallon and a far better public transportation system, the Europeans can afford to do this. The truth, however, is that Europeans are meeting the Kyoto environmental treaty that we never signed. Instead, we try to sychronize green lights to improve traffic flow and cry out against congestion fees. As an environmentalist, I find it discouraging to see how far we have to go compared to our European allies.