Asphalt Nation: How the Automobile Took Over America and How We Can Take It Back

I find it incredible that I have not come upon Asphalt Nation before. I read books on the city and the environment continuously and have consulted the circuit of such writers without exploring this one, or finding its equal. Not only does this book have intelligent values, but it expresses them with elegance and humor. Unlike other books of this nature, it doesn't harangue but uses facts and arguments from lifestyle, the environment, economics and history plus solutions that made clear to me why we are running backwards...with sprawl, pollution, traffic, etc. Hey, and even engaging pictures! I heartily recommend this book.

I had heard of this book and heard the author but didn't realize how compelling and well-written the actual story would be, not only in delivering insights on the way we have become car-dependent but in portraying the root of so many of our environmental and urban ills. Not just a diatribe, this book offers a broad and literary tale of our massive shift to automobility. Both more eloquent and factual than similar books (e.g. "The Geography of Nowhere" and "Fastfood Nation") it is a a good read and influenced my outlook on current events from global warming to farm and forest destruction to being just plain stuck in traffic. I heartily recommend it.

If this country did not have the First Amendment, Asphalt Nation would probably have been one of several books banned from public circulation. Asphalt Nation justly attacks one of the most influential inventions of the modern age, the automobile. This book is an attempt to define our addiction to the personal automobile and the negative effects of this addiction. If you have ever lived in an environment designed for human beings rather than motor vehicles, then you will understand why the people of our country should read a book like this. Places like Paris, Barcelona, Venice, and thousands of small-scaled European cities are examples of the anti-thesis to modern American cities that were built around the daily use of the automobile. I was extremely fortunate to have lived in Europe for half a year and without that experience I would probably not be interested in this topic.The decisions that propelled the automobile into all of our daily lives were made before most of us were born. Past governing officials, business leaders, and our grandparents made these decisions during a period of time before the now evident problems could be foreseen. The development of our built environment (mainly suburbs and shopping centers) can be directly related to the increasing influence of the automobile. Our own culture is very much intertwined with the car, and the problems that it brings effects our society deeply. The car is not the American Dream, it does not symbolize freedom, and, if we act responsibly, it will not be the only option for our children as it was for us.Read this book to see the problems of automobile addiction and not to find solutions to the problems defined. There are no books currently written that have solved, or even come close to solving, the problem associated with this addiction or the secondary problems of urban decay, suburban sprawl, co-dependence on Middle Eastern oil, destruction of our natural environment, drive-thu culture, separation of the extended family, etc. The admittance of the addiction is the first and most important step in finding a solution. This is the point of Asphalt Nation. As people become familiar with the ideas contained in Asphalt Nation, as well as other books, some alternatives like New Urbanism and Co-Housing (community/shared living) will begin to spawn better and better concepts toward a more human-scaled way to live in the next millennium.

Asphalt Nation is wasted on any reader who would dismiss it as another disgruntled environmentalist diatribe. Aside from the obvious environmental issues of pollution and the consumption of natural resources described by the author, the more compelling sections of the book relate to the social costs of automobile dependency. Among these are the destruction of some of the nation's finest architecture in cities such as Boston and Detroit to make way for highwayws,roads and parking lots, the second class status assigned to public transportation, particularly railroads and subways which serve to break automobile dependency, and the lack of suitable space for pedestrians and bicyclists in cities and towns designed to accomodate the automobile and further dependency. The point is well made that the Amish reject the automobile not because the internal combustion engine is intrinsically evil, but that the automobile serves to break social ties and alienate fellow human beings - all one need do is to observe the typical American suburb to see this prophecy fulfilled. What we are left with in the end are "uglified" cities, congested roadways, lack of accessability for those who choose not to drive, and "carchitecture" (to steal a term from the book), that undifferentiated, generic, plastic looking architecture built along roadways, and also in residential subdivisions which serve the automobile. How many "environmental" issues have I mentioned? These are societal ills. The wanton destruction of our architectural heritage, the dumbing down of our aesthetic appreciation, the lack of societal ties, are the results of decades of poor social policy and the influence of the automobile industry's powerful lobby upon it. We are a nation that needs to preserve and protect our social and cultural heritage and identity.

Who can imagine life without cars? Author Jane Holtz Kay recounts the history of the automobile starting from when it was a rare novelty at the beginning of this century. Back then, it promised a bright new future of freedom and mobility. Kay shows, however, how the servant became the master. As a new century approaches, we are increasingly stuck in traffic and only beginning to count the costs of accommodating cars at the expense of all else. You will be surprised to read about how far-reaching and profound the impacts of our auto-dependency are--and realize even more strongly the need for balance. Sparing no detail, Kay paints a sobering picture of mounting congestion, worsening pollution, and widening isolation caused by our heavy-handed grip on the steering wheel. She also portrays the prospect of a more sustainable future--one in which the car has its place but does not dominate our lives. You will learn about efforts in communities around the country that show how bringing about this balance dramatically improves quality of life. A must-read for all concerned with finding solutions to our transportation and social dilemmas!