I wouldn’t exactly call this a hot take showerthought if you look at how many studies there already are that show the effects of car dependency in most of north america.

I am german, my work place is 700m away from where i live, the next supermarket is 450 meters away and i don’t live in a big city where those numbers could go down to under 100m.

So, i know that my “hot take” is not true for most parts of the world. But my statement was specifically about american cities and towns. There is also the very big problem of segregation of incomes. If you can’t afford a car, you can’t afford to live in certain neighborhoods because you simply can’t walk 15 minutes to the next supermarket or to your work.

And i cannot NOT call this crippling and robbing of freedom.

I am 100% with you on the fact that cars also enable freedom. And as i much as i rely on public transport, i also enjoy the freedom of simply hopping into my car and drive exactly where i want and when i want.

But depending on where you live, a car is a necessity instead of a “freedom-enabler” and that… is crippling…