|
|
| Alternative Transportation |
The future is in your legs and the water...... What?
Vehicles of the future will most likely be powered by human exertion or hydrogen fuel. Environmental concerns will force us to take a more "active" role in our transport or ride the train. Government regulations will make it difficult for the average citizen to afford personal, motorized transportation. (Don't think for a minute that it won't happen. You probably have enough explosives in your steering wheel right now to send you hurtling about 40 feet...and you had no say in it!) While the internal combustion engine won't necessarily be dead, it won't exactly be 289 cubic inches of pavement scorching cast iron, either.
Sooner or later, big brother will get involved and legislate the fun out of driving. Very little advancement since the 1960's has taken place without government regulations. Fuel economy first suffered due to emissions rules in the early 70's. Automakers had to make bigger and bigger engines to achieve the same horsepower. Next came the oil crisis which forced everyone to abandon their muscle and embrace econoboxes. Don't forget, though, the Pinto was one of those econoboxes! Next came CAFE. No, not someplace to sip java, but the federal requirement for Corporate Average Fuel Economy. Despite constant grumbling, automakers have seized the opportunity presented by the pressure and are now getting more power out of smaller engines and producing far less pollutants than ever. The trend will continue. A few years later, NHTSA tried to make airbags mandatory. (Yes, back in the 70's they wanted to blow your face off before the Big 3 even knew how to do it effectively.) With enough (justified) whining by the automakers, the dogs were called off. Unfortunately, somebody with more authority than sense will get a hairbrained idea which will force the automakers to release another group of "not quite ready for prime-time" vehicles. That is when we will see alternative transportation really take off.
Enjoy your Mustang or Expedition while you can. The US won't be able to keep picking on insane dictators to preserve the Mideastern oil supply. IT WILL RUN OUT! There will be a few more years of gasoline cheaper than water, then gas prices will skyrocket to the point that you won't be able to drive to work anymore. I fully believe in the power of the free market and would never, ever join the chorus of knuckleheads asking for a ban on behemoths like the Excursion or Hummer. HOWEVER, the day will come when only those people who need such vehicles will be driving them. The soccer moms hauling 5 cubic feet of cargo in 90 cubic feet of space will be very upset when they have to start dipping into their plastic surgery funds to fill a 44 gallon fuel tank.
The old adage says that necessity is the mother of invention. Well, there will be a need and there will be LOTS of invention. We humans are chronically lazy and impatient, so we want to get somewhere with as little effort and as fast as possible. If fuel costs too much and walking is too slow, we will yearn for a better way. Sadly, our shortsighted politicians will not have supported viable public transportation.......