avatarTim Cheneval

Summarize

Auto-Identity

From the Thought Bloom newsletter — Issue #004

In college, I was an art school student in downtown Philadelphia, and my only means of travel was my white Mercier fixed-gear bicycle. I customized every detail of that machine. White and chrome threadless forks, white deep-v rims, a knockoff Brooks saddle. I spent weekends pedaling the city with friends, chasing bike messengers, and photographing my ride in different scenes across the city. Weekdays were spent in class, with half-hour breaks that allowed me to pedal down Broad Street for a meal, or to Ritten House Square for coffee. That bike gave me a sense of freedom I had never experienced, but it also connected me to a vibrant culture of other fixed gear geeks all over the city.

However, I also remember the challenge of trying to navigate a city full of automobiles. I was hit by vehicles 3 times over the course of my 3 years of biking in Philadelphia. Cities have such great public transportation options from biking lanes to buses and trains, but there are still an ungodly amount of cars on city roads every day. Why? They are noisy, inefficient, dangerous, air polluting machines of death. We can do better.

Fast forward 13 years and I now live in Utah. There is a massive stretch of I-15 that connects the northern region and the southern region of the state. On weekends and holidays, a huge chunk of the state’s population hop in their cars and drive to the other side to enjoy the greener grass. This highway is the only reasonable route of travel between the two high-population regions, so when the holidays hit, so do the traffic jams.

And that’s where I am; stuck in Labor Day traffic, daydreaming.

I am looking around at all the other vehicles stuck in traffic with me, trucks with massive lifts and “live free or die” bumper stickers, Subaru’s with bike racks hauling small families, and sporting “peace” vinyl magnets. A luxury SUV with one lone individual surrounded by a rich leather interior.

I am reminded of my college years, and all of the proud fixed gear bikers I met along the way. The folks on this road are a lot like those bikers, just trying to express themselves, and they are finding that possibility of expression in their automobiles.

There are a lot of reasons that the USA won’t move to better transportation infrastructure; we’ve invested too much money into highways and roads, and all of our zoning laws put common needs so far away that driving is unavoidable. However, I think at the heart of the issue is an identity problem. America as a nation identifies with automobiles, and individually, Americans will always think of automobiles as a way to express their personal uniquenesses on the road. Daniel Kahneman has written a book that talks about this identity-centric decision-making phenomenon, the idea being that logic is trumped by identity expression when people make choices.

If we ever want to make acute strides towards a better future where automobiles don’t dominate American infrastructure, we have to loosen our grip on the identities we’ve constructed around us, and be willing to wade into the murky unknown together. That means taking pride not in the noise our exhaust makes when we rev our engines, but rather in the future we enable by choosing public transportation for our commute.

For now, I’ll spend my time in traffic jams dreaming of a day when I can take the high-speed rail up to the northern region of Utah, grab a bus up to the ski slopes, or rent a bike and tour the Salt Lake Valley. While this is a dream for me, it’s a reality for most Europeans who have great access to an extensive rail and bus system. It’s definitely possible. Maybe one day..

-Tim

This short essay is from the latest issue of The Thought Bloom newsletter, a publication written weekly by me that shares thoughtfully curated articles, tech/science spotlights, and art.

My goal is to help people find paths to resources that will open their minds. If you are interested in finding this work in your inbox every week for free then subscribe here.

Cheers.

Biking
Transportation
Identity
City Planning
Travel
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