When the summer heat isn’t bearing down like a laser, I like to get out every now and then. My mode of transportation? A bike. After putting on my helmet and strapping in some earbuds, I take it down the main street of Ontario.
I notice the same yellow buggy parked across the street from my house. Far enough along, there are the murals and animal statues of downtown. However, with all the sights, the thing that sticks with me most is what’s in between. The roads, the sidewalks, the buildings — almost everything is another hue of gray.
They say getting regular exercise helps with depression, but what about when the environment to exercise in is inversely depressing and mostly concrete? Every bike ride is a battle between the right and left sides of my brain, one trying to take my attention away from the scent of gas and asphalt, the other trying to keep me from getting run over.
Car-centric infrastructure is unbearable. What it means in practice is football fields worth of empty parking spaces. Why develop a bus system when you could add more lanes? Why lay train tracks when you can pour asphalt? Not enough space on the sidewalk for bikers? Stick them in the road! Pedal into the street and pray the two ton slabs of metal are considerate to the rare sight of a biker.
The United States is uniquely focused on cars as the primary mode of transportation. This differs from countries like Denmark, where the Cycling Embassy of Denmark reports 15% of all commutes are made with bikes. Many other commutes are by foot or public transit.
Don’t forget the health concerns created by cars. Environmentally speaking, cars account for 57% of transportation related emissions in the U.S., according to the Environment Protection Agency. This contributes to greenhouse gas-related physical conditions and climate change.
They are also increasingly dangerous for pedestrians. NPR reported a 40 year high in pedestrian fatalities due to crashes in 2023.
The reality is that car based infrastructure is a poor road to go down. We’re already halfway there, but it’s never too late to turn around. I’m not asking to uproot our cities, I just want some trains.
— Wesley Ince, Ontario High School
This story was produced by student reporters as part of the High School Journalism Institute, an annual collaboration among The Oregonian/OregonLive, Oregon State University and other Oregon media organizations. For more information or to support the program, go to oregonlive.com/hsji.