Car-Dependence is Killing Us: Saving Chicago’s Complete Streets is Step 1

Sign the Chicago 2100 Petition and Advocate for a less car-dependent Chicago

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Modern life in America is notoriously hitched to the car. Over the last century, we have bulldozed vibrant neighborhoods for sterile highways, and redesigned cities for driving convenience. It has shaped our American culture of drive-in movies and drive-through food; a romance with the road with the baggage of a sedentary and more socially isolated lifestyle. We have spewed lead into the air and still pollute our health by driving. Most tragically of all, ~35,000 Americans per year die at the hands of a vehicle, almost 100 every day. These are just some of the downstream effects of a car-first city that seem unavoidable, but are not inevitable. We don’t have to live this way, but the status quo of car dominance is so entrenched, some see this as a fact of life, or even an attack on freedom. 

Despite this, we can’t expect everyone to switch overnight to walking, biking, or transit, especially in rural areas. Most rely on their car daily to reach work, education, and recreation. Driving is so ubiquitous that many can’t see a life without it. Yes cars can offer an unparalleled freedom that transit can’t match, and speed that walking or biking can’t keep up with, but at what cost to our collective health and safety?

It's impossible to have a logical analysis of our mobility choices and their outcomes when many live in a place with no viable alternatives. In some cases, this leaves people that can’t drive stranded: the elderly, disabled, and children. With structural reinforcement of zoning, parking mandates, existing development patterns, and the cultural attachment to driving, how do we go about undoing this pattern? 

With advocacy work, we can improve real alternatives to driving. Many Chicagoans live a car free lifestyle, able to live life how it's been done for generations. Housing density from historical development served by rapid transit routes works well in popular neighborhoods. For a local trip, many walk/bike to a store. Reaching job centers downtown is as easy as walking to the nearest “L” station. There is substantial support and investment in public transportation infrastructure, with more needed to keep it a viable alternative to driving. There are proven returns from transit investment, estimated at 13x ROI from recent Argonne research. 

To be fair, not all cities are like Chicago, nor do they have to become it to see benefits from more modality options. The downsides of car-dependence are abundantly clear, and there are many peer cities worldwide with less car reliance. Especially in regard to health and safety, I argue it is a policy imperative to move away from car-dependence, as it is destructive in our communities. 

Death by car is startlingly common and democratic. It is the #1 leading cause of death in the US for those between 1-44 years old. Over 35,000 funerals a year, because the majority of our cities are designed to accommodate and crowd out any other form of transport. Car crashes cause a significant number of life altering injuries, burdensome medical costs, and lost productivity. It’s time to challenge these appalling statistics.

Positively, death on American roads has improved since its worst period. Although the chart does not cover recent years, the trend has stagnated, with deaths hovering between 35-40k since ~2005. Overall death per millions of population and by vehicle miles traveled has trended downwards, but also has stagnated in the last 10 years or so. Safer road design and technological safety features may enable safer travel than previous decades, but it seems there is still a finite number of casualties tolerated.

However, if you choose not to drive, you are at a growing risk. Pedestrian deaths have risen to record highs, around 7,000 / year. We are heading in the wrong direction, with larger and heavier vehicles, and those behind the wheel more distracted by screens more than ever. For many, this is a race to the bottom of vehicle size. For example, SUVs and large vehicles are more dangerous for pedestrians, but perceived to be safer for the driver in the event of a crash. Dodging death is just a normal part of a commute, as our roads are speedways for the reckless in which we all pay the price.

In Chicago, there are drastic cuts being considered to the Complete Streets program. The program has yielded a 30% decrease in fatal crashes since a peak in 2021, “proving that bold, sustained investment in safer street design can save lives and make our city a national leader in traffic safety”. The Active Transportation Alliance is leading the fight to call on City Council and Mayor Brandon Johnson to fund safer streets. The recent capital bond proposal has a 70% cut to the projects responsible for Chicago’s remarkable success in reducing tragedies in our communities. These projects help reduce traffic conflict with vulnerable road users, and importantly control speeding on our most dangerous roads. 

Click to Send a Message to Chicago Leadership demanding Safe Complete Streets!

With the cultural norm of speeding, crashes are deadlier than they need to be. With higher speed limits, we are accepting a tradeoff of driver convenience to safety and human life. Unfortunately, Chicago recently tried and failed to reduce speed limits to 25 from 30 mph. Changes like this drastically reduce fatality rates in crashes. While Chicago's 2025 bid to drop speed limits crashed in council, initiatives like Ald. La Spata's revenue ordinance offers a detour toward safety. Controversial speed cameras would keep ticket revenue within traffic safety funds. These can make someone think twice about reckless driving while improving safety infrastructure. Physical barriers to speeding, like bump outs and speed humps, are effective on many roadways and part of Chicago’s vision zero initiative. These changes are a small step toward reducing driving dangers and protecting pedestrians.

In modern sprawl, simply walking to your destination can be deadly, but avoiding walking entirely can kill you too. No one is holding a gun to your head to drive, but in many places across our cities, it is the only viable way to get somewhere. Our lives are designed with 1 modality of travel in mind: driving. With everything spaced further apart to accommodate free parking and large stroads, it's obvious why most drive everywhere. This design focus makes taking transit and walking unpleasant and inconvenient, if not downright impossible. Many might prefer to simply drive, but we as humans need to move. Being more sedentary is objectively bad for your health. Scientific research shows a significant increase in risks for heart disease, obesity, cancer, mental health struggles, and so many more chronic illnesses. This plagues our overstretched healthcare system. 

Walking for transport isn’t easy with sprawl or smog filled air. We look back at gasoline with lead with downright disgust. Even though that has been regulated, the problem goes deeper. Tailpipe emissions are disturbingly carcinogenic, contributing to a higher rate of respiratory illness and death. Yes, electric vehicles alleviate that concern - except for the mining of materials needed to manufacture. Despite less tailpipe emissions, half of pollutants from vehicles originate from tire and brake wear. 

Why do we as a society accept the toxic emissions from this? Technological advances and regulations mitigated some of these negative externalities at first glance. EVs cut tailpipe emissions, yet their heavier batteries accelerate tire wear, underscoring that no tech fix beats reducing trips altogether. Beyond tailpipes, there is a litany of underdiscussed challenges: elevated noise pollution, storm water excess runoff, microplastic pollutants, and manufacturing / oil extraction pollutants. 

In practice, pricing these negative externalities can help reduce them. Recent studies from New York City show its congestion pricing policy has decreased air pollution by 22%. In effect, by reducing car traffic in lower Manhattan with a charge, it simultaneously improved air quality and funds transit improvement to give alternative means to driving.

Is it a fair assessment that even with all of the negatives, some still want to drive? Nearly 1 in 5 Americans want to live car free, but what about the others? Decades of promotion and subsidization of this lifestyle make it seem like the only choice. Would driving be as commonplace if it was less subsidized and these negative effects were not accepted as a fact of life? 

Illinois’ recent landmark investment in public transit has sparked new momentum and optimism for a future with world-class transit. The fight is not over, with a contentious battle to fund the life-saving complete streets program. Community voices are needed to support these initiatives and inspire long-term visions like Chicago 2100. We can have better, safer alternatives to driving. Importantly, we can overcome the clear negative health and safety outcomes of a car dependent society. Let’s reclaim streets for people, not pistons, and shift gears for a healthier future.

Sign the Chicago 2100 Petition and Advocate for a less car-dependent Chicago

Click to Send a Message to Chicago Leadership demanding Safe Complete Streets!