2008/08/01

High oil prices are good for you?

From Maclean’s, July 28 2008
The oil diet
Your wallet may be hurting, but soaring gas prices could be the answer to a long – and skinny – life, according to new research out of Harvard, traffic deaths will plummet by as much as one-third over the next year because so many motorists simply can’t afford o back out of the driveway. A separate study by a North Carolina professor has found that a $1 boost at the pumps could cut obesity rates by nine per cent, as people are forced to walk, bike, and cook at home.
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I notice on my drive to work a huge increase in cyclists. People of every age and weight class. This is a good thing, of course, but the condition of our roads (Toronto) and the lack of marked bike lanes on the roads I use make it a very dangerous-looking trip. I can’t help but wonder if there will be enough cycling deaths to make up for the automotive fatality shortfall predicted by Harvard.

When are we going to start putting a couple of bucks into biking facilities for every zillion dollars we spend on automotive facilities?

Oh, yeah, cyclists don’t pay gas tax, right? I forgot.