fossil fuels

[nibot]

Supposing that we have already passed the time of peak oil production, my question for you is this: in what year will we see fewer cars on California roads than in the previous year?

At what point will the Interstate Highways be fossil roads, abandoned relics, like the decaying steel towns of Pennsylvania, like the Erie Canal?

When will Phoenix be Detroit?

Or will someone invent the coal-powered car and doom us all? (The plug-in Prius actually burns coal.)

Comments

[ephermata.livejournal.com]

We will switch to electric, ethanol, or some other source of power for cars before giving up cars altogether. There may still be a year over year drop in the number of cars at some point, but I don't see the interstates becoming fossils for that reason. Goods need to move from point A to point B, and rails don't do it for a lot of the country.

A general economic crash, on the other hand...well, that could do it.

[nibot.livejournal.com]

The Phoenix / Detroit comparison is also deliciously ironic: Detroit's boom-bust cycle was also due to the automobile.

[joneshead.livejournal.com]

IMO the internal combustion engine shouldve gone out of style with the kerosene lantern.
Where are our sugar powered fuel cell cars?

I also think that this crisis could be abated if oil prices went up to $50 a gal, and automobiles could successfully utilize 90% of the energy content of gasoline. i.e. 200mpg's +


On the road I oft find myself thinking of the interstates in much the manner that you mentioned;
Derelict, forlorn, and abounding with wildlife.

[onhava.livejournal.com]

The plug-in Prius actually burns coal.

But! Its fuel efficiency is so much higher than an internal combustion engine that it emits significantly less carbon dioxide per mile than cars running on gasoline.

[cassiusdio.livejournal.com]

It's simple. We need to finally develop practical fusion power, which will then provide electricity to convert water to hydrogen for use in cars like Honda's latest (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/automobiles/autoreviews/09HONDA.html?ex=1213160400&en=dda3348f43743e4a&ei=5087&WT.mc_id=AU-D-I-NYT-MOD-MOD-M008-ROS-1207-PH&WT.mc_ev=click&mkt=AU-D-I-NYT-MOD-MOD-M008-ROS-1207-PH), which is ready for production and will be released in SoCal next summer.

Until then, nuclear fission is still awfully safe and completely carbon free....

[surpheon.livejournal.com]

Intersates will probably never be abandoned relics. The large, relatively direct right of ways they provide will be valuable for some form of transport as long as we have a civilization (barring teleporters or some other impossible tech appearing).

Now, when the 30 min commute disappears is a bit more fun to guess at. I give it 15 years before the current driving society paradigm collapses. I see it being replaced to a great extent by telecommuting. Not little-screen telecommuting, but a room with a couple full wall screens and HD camera that acts as a real cubicle. It'd be always on and you could 'walk by' other people's cube and pop in for quick comments or even just to toss a hi in the 'door.' This is a logical extension of current video, bandwidth and camera tech curves.

[ansitron.livejournal.com]

This seems to be some fantasy world where "I told you so" would be applicable. The only reason we still use our current oil-based infrastructures is because it's easy and relatively cheap. If it came down to NEED, we'd be running either hydrogen-electric cars based off of power plants in outer space or some shit like that. If the highways become abandoned, it will be because most people prefer flying cars.

I always wonder how much extra carbon emissions are produced from creating extra parts and upgraded interior knick-knacks (produced in high pollution/cheap labor economies).. I especially get a kick out of how most hybrid driving hippie "activists", who love scoffing at people who drive SUVs, are also the same smug hippies who are more likely to get in a jet plane and fly places just for leisure.