How come smoking inside cars to protect children’s health was banned in the UK but other generators of air pollution (which arguably have a much greater impact on health) have not? Or, why is driving at 25mph in a 20mph zone socially acceptable while a restaurant not taking food safety rules seriously is not acceptable?
Motonormativity is a term coined by Ian Walker from the University of Swansea and describes the acceptance of the negative aspects of cars while rejecting the same aspects when applied to other areas of life. In a study from 2023, his team compared the survey responses from a number of surveys where two statements differed only by reference to motor vehicles. For example, 75% of people agreed that “People shouldn't smoke in highly populated areas where other people have to breathe in the cigarette fumes” but only 17% of people agreed that “People shouldn't drive in highly populated areas where other people have to breathe in the car fumes”. Interestingly, the responses didn’t vary much between drivers and non-drivers: across the population, it appears that the risks associated with motoring have been accepted.
Defying logic
Once you are aware of it and start to look around your local environment, you see examples of it everywhere: there’s a great video by Global Cycling Network which highlights everyday things that are illogically car-focused, and this Not Just Cars video discusses the illogicality of speed limits.
Here’s a great example near us: when walking from the park to the Minet Library, the road layout forces pedestrians to take a path across a junction that is around three times the width of a road. If you’re trying to get a toddler safely across the road, or if you are a slower adult walker, this is an extremely daunting proposition. And so, pedestrians are forced to walk further up to cross safely. And why? So cars are able to drive more quickly through the junction.
With car ownership in our local area at around 30%, it seems like the prevailing urban design favours the minority.
BC=Before Car?
It was not always thus. This nice article delves back to the 1920s where US courts ordered that a child has an absolute right to use the street. Therefore, it was the motorist’s responsibility to stay away from the child, not vice versa. In the UK, the Highway Code was updated in 2022 to show the hierarchy of road users and make clear that the most vulnerable had the most rights. However, all the articles we can find consider how this has gone down from the perspective of the motorist - quelle surprise! Shall we reclaim the streets?