We aren’t the only ones who care about driving and commuting. People are talking about it all over the web. The Road Warrior stumbled across three good posts you might be interested in: Americans cutting back on their driving, or are they? Now you can text inconsiderate parkers. (Thanks to ilovecommuting.tumblr.com for that one.) And car repairs really do cost more in California.
How many vehicles are in your driveway? Fewer than you used to have?
If data crunchers at Atlantic Cities are onto something, you’ve downsized since 2006. In a story titled “Have we passed peak cars?” Jordan Weissman summarizes the results of a study conducted by Michael Sivak of the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute, and he explores some possible reasons.
“Americans have been cutting back on their driving ever since the recession. They’ve logged fewer miles on the road. They’ve been less likely to get a driver’s license. And they’ve bought fewer vehicles. But does all this actually mean the U.S. is getting over car culture? Or is it just the product of a down economy?”
Read the full story HERE.
You pull into a parking lot and find one empty spot, way in the back. Once you get there, you understand why it’s empty. Some clown has his minivan wheels so far over the line only a motorcycle will fit. Instead of leaving a nasty message under the windshield wiper, now you can text the owner. At least in San Francisco.
On sfist.com, Brock Keeling explains how it works: “It’s called CurbTXT. Drivers can sign up by registering their license plates and phone numbers. The service will then give you a sticker for your car that allows other drivers to contact you via SMS text. Anyone with a cellphone capable of sending text messages can use it.”
There are lots of drawbacks. It won’t work unless you enter the license plate of someone who is registered, and texting doesn’t actually accomplish anything other than allowing you to vent, but maybe it’s the nub of a new idea. Read the tumblr post HERE, the sfist.com story HERE.
If your “check engine” light came on last year, how much did it cost you to find out what was wrong? In California, the average price for that repair was $390.37 for parts and labor, according to a report issued by CarMD.com. Compare that with the national average of $367.84, up 10% from 2011.
California was ranked the third most expensive state, following New Jersey at $392.99 and Washington, D.C., at $391.62. North Carolina was fourth at $389.91, and Maryland was fifth at $387.78. Vermontwas least expensive, at $269.72.
CarMD.com issued the report after analyzing more than 160,000 repairs made on vehicles with check engine light problems in 2012. Read the full report HERE.
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Send your Road Warrior questions to linda.castrone@pressdemocrat.com.
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