Asheville, N.C.
Traffic pattern
Thanks for reading through to the end…
We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.
We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.
Before you comment
The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.
We are so deeply immersed in the car culture that most people can’t even imagine getting around town any other way. Even poor people who have to ride the bus or walk to work will buy a car once they begin to prosper. The automobile has become so synonymous with the ideas of American Individualism that any discussion about reducing their use is met with hostile resistance. Sharing rides is for Europeans.
It’s should be very telling that we have to advertise “Walk to School Days” or “Walk ability Scores” and people have to put signs in their front yards asking selfish drivers to slow down going through the neighborhood . It’s troubling that elected officials can’t raise gas taxes or implement other user fees as a way of covering the full cost of building the automobile infrastructure without getting run out office. It’s frustrating that drivers can’t see how their choice of transport is hurting their health and the health of the planet.
There is nothing wrong with development as long as alternative transportation is available. We need the housing.
Such has been the way of Asheville – and in fairness, most cities in America – since the late 60’s – early 70’s – blocks of historic buildings destroyed to accommodate either movement or parking of cars, and lovely old neighborhoods abandoned or let out by absentee landlords because folks could now commute from the ‘burbs instead of walk or bike or catch a streetcar or bus to work or to market….And folks who keep asking whether passenger rail service will ever return, the answer is most likely no, as most folks would probably ride it only once or twice for the novelty of it, but wouldn’t want to be deprived of their automobiles for any length of time….