<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2800.1458" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV>Some posters seeking to illustrate the supposed wickedness of the yankee consumer</DIV> <DIV>are tempted to imagine exemplary behaviour on the part of Europeans.</DIV> <DIV>But this is not so.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>So for example</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Jon writes</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>> The trouble is that, unlike Europeans, apparently, Americans have a<BR>> very deep-seated urge to flee from areas of large population<BR>> concentration to low-concentration ones. Perhaps this is a hold-over of<BR>> the old pioneer longing to "light out for the territory." </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>And Wojtek</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>"It does not take a rocket scientist to<BR>figure out that the best way to improve transit and fuel efficiency is to<BR>increase the number of people per unit of energy consumed, and the solution<BR>to this is a no brainer practiced in all countries except the fucking United<BR>States (may it disintegrate into chaos!), and known as public<BR>transportation. "</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>But the trend in Europe - and most definitely my part of it, but actually all of it - </DIV> <DIV>is just the same as in the US, though less so, maybe.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>European journeys in cars are increasing, by public transport, decreasing </DIV> <DIV>(with the exception of densely urbanised areas, London, Paris, where its the other way around).</DIV> <DIV>Basically, Britons are making more journeys by car, less by bus and less by bike, 1991-2001.</DIV> <DIV>Daniel Dorling and Bethan Thomas's People and Places, Bristol, 2004 gives good sources.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>So, too, suburbanisation, which increases apace. By the government's categorisations, </DIV> <DIV>84 per cent of Britons live in suburban-type wards. </DIV> <DIV><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><FONT size=3>Marcial Echenique and Rob Homewood, <I>The Future Of Suburbs And Exurbs, </I></FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><FONT size=3><I>Report for The Independent Transport Commission,</I> </FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><FONT size=3>T</FONT></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><FONT size=3>he Martin Centre for Architectural and Urban Studies 2003, p 6</FONT></SPAN></DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV></BODY></HTML>