The road, more than simply a system of regulations and designs, is a place where many millions of us, with only loose parameters for how to behave, are thrown together daily in a kind of massive petri dish in which… — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
“The pursuit of a kind of absolute safety, above all other considerations of what makes places good environments, has not only made those streets… — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
Human attention, in the best of circumstances, is a fluid but fragile entity. Beyond a certain threshold, the more that is asked of it,… — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
Many traffic signs have become like placebos, giving false comfort to the afflicted, or simple boilerplate to ward off lawsuits, the roadway version of the Kellogg’s Pop-Tarts box that says, “Warning: Pastry Filling May Be Hot When Heated. — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share
“This is the reason the whole ‘keep your eyes on the road, your hands upon the wheel, use the hands-free handset’ idea is a… — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
The way humans hunt for parking and the way animals hunt for food are not as different as you might think. — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
“This raises the interesting, if seemingly outlandish, question of why car drivers, virtually alone among users of wheeled transport, do not wear helmets. Yes, cars do provide a nice metal cocoon with inflatable cushions. But in Australia, for example, head injuries among car occupants, according to research by the Federal Office of Road Safety, make up half the country’s traffic-injury… — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share
“'Can you imagine, 30 years ago, saying nobody will make coffee at home?' Nancy McGuckin, a travel researcher in Washington, D.C.” — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
Men may or may not be better drivers than women, but they seem to die more often trying to prove that they are. — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
“There is a simple mantra you can carry about you in traffic: When a situation feels dangerous to you, it's probably more safe than… — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
As Harvard University psychologist Daniel Gilbert argues, 'You can't adapt to commuting, because it's entirely unpredictable. Driving in traffic is a different kind of… — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
“It's probably no accident that whenever one hears of a smart technology, it refers to something that has been taken out of human control.” — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
The road, more than simply a system of regulations and designs, is a place where many millions of us, with only loose parameters for… — Tom Vanderbilt Copy Share Image
