Table 4-10.Annual Car Miles Driven, by
Length of Trip, 1969-1970
| Length of trip |
Number
(billions) |
Percent |
Cumulative
percent |
| Total miles driven |
777 |
100 |
|
| Under 5 miles |
122 |
16 |
16 |
| 6-10 |
119 |
15 |
31 |
| 11-15 |
96 |
12 |
43 |
| 16-20 |
71 |
9 |
52 |
| 21-30 |
91 |
12 |
64 |
| 31-99 |
145 |
19 |
83 |
| 100 and over |
133 |
17 |
100 |
| Source: Unpublished
data from U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway
Administration, Nationwide Personal Transportation Study,
Washington, D.C. |
with the car's flexibility can people live in spread-out areas
beyond walking distance of stores and schools and beyond anything
but feeder transit lines.
Early
cities were walking cities. The streets were narrow; people lived
close together, and they could find everything they needed within a
few blocks. With the advent of public transportation, the trolley
and railroad, cities developed along the transit lines and at
transit stops. Much larger and more spread-out cities were now
possible, but still people were clustered. It was only with the
prosperity following World War II, the accompanying growth of car
ownership, and the construction of superhighways that the auto and
the suburbs became a part of the American scene. Now residential
development was possible in all directions.
Suburban
growth was not designed to encourage public transit use. Ridership
began to decline, and with passenger decline came operating losses,
increased fares, and decreased service. All this brought on further
declines in passengers, further deficits, and a repeat of the
cycle. As more and more people switched to cars, some of the
pleasures and advantages of the car were lost. Instead of speeding
to its destination, the car might get caught in a traffic jam.
Instead of enjoying a fresh breeze the driver is more likely to
wish for air conditioning to shut out the exhaust fumes from other
vehicles.
The impact
of cities' historical development is evident today in the pattern
of car ownership and use. It is least common in the central cities
of metropolitan areas (Table 4-11). These are the most densely
populated areas. Shops are fairly easy to reach on foot or by
public transit. The relationship between population density, age of
the city, and car ownership can be seen in the work of Lansing and
Hendricks. They distinguish between old and new central cities. Old
central cities are Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, St. Louis, and
Philadelphia. All had a population of over 500,000 in 1900. Lansing
and Hendricks identify Cleveland, Detroit, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh,
San Francisco,