Should private car ownership be banned?

When the first Model T Ford rolled off its assembly line, it changed not just
transportation but the world. For decades, cars have triumphed as a means of
private transport, arguably reaching a cultural peak with the automobile culture
of the 1950s. While the decline of the industry may not have been a James Dean
car crash, it is nonetheless obvious not just in the manufacturers revenues but
also in the publics attitudes. However, there remains a vocal group of car
advocates who wish for the return of the glory days of cars reigning supreme.
They would have us believe that these vehicles outshine any other means of
transport, public or private. Such a hypothesis is, however, nave and arrogant.
Private car ownership should be banned, as cars are the cause of accidents,
pollution, and obesity.
To begin with, proponents of the automobile would claim that cars are a
safe means of transport. The conscience of car manufacturers had been tested in
the past by staggeringly low accident survival rates, but since then the
advancements in safety technologies have made travelling by car a far less
deadly experience. The ceaseless improvements to airbags, seatbelts and the
geometry of the vehicle have turned cars from the suicide macho tanks of the
mid-20th century into slick, rigorously tested family machines. Such an argument
is, however, short-sighted. The safety of the driver may have been drastically
improved, but pedestrians are still at the mercy of the person behind the wheel.
The implementation of various safety features may have actually made drivers
more reckless as they feel untouchable in their steel cages. Even a head-on
collision at anything but extreme speed is survivable for the drivers. For the
pedestrian who dares cross the street rather than let the car drive by, however,
every collision carries the risk of permanent injury or death because of the sheer
mass of the vehicle. Cyclists, much-maligned by drivers and pedestrians alike,
pose a far lesser danger even if they are at times a nuisance. The king-of-theroad attitude of many drivers coupled with the cars velocity truly is a deadly
mixture. It is clear, then, that cars inherently cause traffic accidents.
As well as being a safe means of transport, proponents of cars may
propose the notion of them being an increasingly environment-friendly means of
transport. Pointing to the current trends in the automobile industry, they may
underline the falling CO2 emission in petrol engines and the rising numbers of
electric cars as heralding an upcoming era of truly green cars. What they
conveniently choose to omit, however, is the fact that most cars driving our
streets are far from the highest standards in clean energy, and that even the
most advanced automobiles are still a significant danger for the environment.
The beautiful new engines so proudly presented at motor shows are quickly
proved to be of little importance if the cars actually being driven around are
twenty-year-old petrol guzzlers. As regards electric cars, beautiful inventions
though they are, the electricity that fuels them also needs a source. At present,
most of the worlds power continues to be produced from fossil fuels. Even if the
car in question does not consume petrol, it still uses up coal, oil or gas, simply in
a different form. Thus, private cars should be banned as they cause pollution.
Above all, those who oppose private ownership of cars being banned hail
their unsurpassable convenience. Be it a run to the shops or a weekend out of
town, the cars speed and the room and independence it provides are factors

which even the staunchest environmentalist luddite cannot resist. Public

transport may be cheaper but the need to rely on factors outside of your control
to bring you to the end of your journey is a painful inconvenience. Furthermore,
transporting anything larger than a shopping bag without a car is virtually
impossible. While such arguments undoubtedly ring true to many, cars have
made us lazy and overweight. They are convenient machines, there can be no
doubt about that. Too much so, as a matter of fact, as they seem to be further
depriving us of physical activity day after day. The ubiquity of cars has given us a
permission to abuse their comforts. It is not uncommon to see people drive
distances which could easily be covered on foot. The basic act of walking appears
to be disappearing on distances longer than five hundred metres, a development
which sadly contributes to the growing health and weight problems of the world
populace.
To sum up, while the proponents of private car ownership present a
number of fervent arguments, they come down to arrogance. The egocentrism of
car users prevents them from seeing the obvious flaws in their reasoning. Cars
cause accidents, pollution, and obesity. Bearing the above arguments in mind, it
is only reasonable to conclude that private car ownership should be banned.