Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Streetsblog

The Secret to Enjoying Winter: Ditch the Car

There's nothing like a big snowfall to make you stop and think about our car dependent culture.

When parts the Midwest got buried last week, and downtown Cleveland looked like a parking lot, I have to say, it felt pretty good to be rushing past cars on foot, while I made my way to the rapid transit station. I was a little bit smug about making it home in 45 minutes, a fraction of the time the average car commuter sat in bumper-to-bumper traffic, burning fuel and cursing his neighbors.

It seems Bill Lindeke at Network blog Twin City Sidewalks was having a moment of car-free zen himself. And he's done a beautiful job describing the pleasures of a heavy winter snow, if the headaches of driving in hazardous conditions are removed from the equation:

false

On snowy nights and snow days like this weekend, I like to imagine an alternative. I like to stand out on my porch in the cold and snowy night when everything is quiet, when the snowpiles muffle even the sound of the freight train running through the city, when you can stand there for half an hour and not one car dares traverse the snow-piled street. During a blizzard, I like to walk up from the bus stop in the middle of the road and not once think that I should get out of the way, because for a brief moment or two, I'm in a world without cars.

Even on Saturday morning, during the height of the storm, my corner store was open and I could walk to it and buy some Triscuits. It was like walking into a happier world, far from car kvetches and asphalt anxiety. Nobody there was worried about their commute, because almost everyone lived walking distance from the store. It was warm and lit up and had food and you could trudge there through the snow no matter how much blizzard was blizzarding outside.

This blizzard was something to remember, and points to how much maintenance and technical engineering is involved in our auto-dependent lifestyle. At least for a day or two, we pause and forget and live life without our car, not only because we have to, but to see what it might be like.

Well put, my friend. A friendly Midwestern wintertime salutation to you: stay warm!

Elsewhere on the Network today: Commute Orlando reports that after a spirited campaign waged by residents of Miami's Brickell neighborhood, the Florida Department of Transportation has agreed to a speed limit reduction of just five miles per hour on Brickell Avenue. Commute by Bike interviews a MapQuest engineer about developing online trip planning tools for cyclists. And Urban Review STL offers a first-person account to help explain why Amtrak ridership has been rising around the country.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Beach Reading: Zohran Mamdani’s Answers to Streetsblog’s Mayoral Candidate Survey

Spend the holiday weekend with Zohran Mamdani's answers to Streetsblog's mayoral candidate questionnaire.

July 4, 2025

Friday Video: Why NYC Needs ‘Low-Traffic Neighborhoods’

London's Church Street, like so many of our business corridors, was choking on cars — until the advent of the low-traffic neighborhood.

July 4, 2025

Friday’s Headlines: E-Bikes in Parks … Permanently Edition

The Parks Department will permanently allow e-bikes in city parks following a two-year pilot. Plus more news.

July 4, 2025

Anti-Miracle On 34th Street: Adams Administration Pauses Work On 34th Street Busway

The highly-anticipated 34th Street busway may not happen under Mayor Adams after all, sources said.

July 3, 2025

Manhattan DA Says Alleged Central Park Hit-and-Run Cyclist Didn’t Flee, Drops Charges

Prosecutors said the 30-year-old cyclist "remained on the scene for about 45 minutes after the crash and waited for paramedics to arrive to treat the injured person."

Sean Duffy’s ‘Great America Road Trip’ Wants You to Drive to Central Park

Sean Duffy's "Great American Road Trip" encourages Americans to drive to sites in the most transit-rich and car-choked parts of the country.

July 3, 2025
See all posts