“When you ride alone, you ride with Hitler!”
It was the tagline on a provocative government-backed poster that kicked off the history of a profession that is focused on getting people out of the habit of driving alone and showing that there are better, healthier, and more efficient and fun options.
World War II, in fact, saw the highest rate of public-transit use in U.S. history. People were assured that it was patriotic to cut back on their driving and that the materials used to make cars had a bigger purpose – the war effort.
Brian Shaw, who has played an integral role in building smarter ways to get around campus at Emory University, the University of Chicago, and the University of Pennsylvania, offered a nice history lesson of the “not riding alone” effort as the Association of Commuter Transportation began this week in Savannah, Georgia.
Shaw is also ACT president, and he noted that fuel and rubber were the main rationed resources during World War II. After the war, Americans were excited to be able to again use these matierials and move to the suburbs, which signaled a major decline in carpooling and a major uptick in single-occupied car trips.
Brian Shaw, president of the Association of Commuter Transportation
The modern era of this transportation-related profession resumed in earnest when, in 1979, the oil embargo made driving and going to the gas station a challenge. Vanpools and computerized ride-matching were introduced. The embargo also pushed along the construction of Metro in Washington D.C., rapid transit in Atlanta, and trolley systems in San Diego and San Francisco.
ACT formed in the mid 1980s, and has been a catalyst for mainstreaming initiatives that take solo drivers off the roads and promote other forms of transportation such as bicycling, walking, bus and subway riding, vanpooling, and carpooling.
The federal Clean Air Act in 1990 mandated employer trip reduction, meaning employers had to have programs in place to give employees options for commuting choices and transit incentives. President Bill Clinton overturned this mandate in the 1990s, but many employers continued with their efforts. In 1991, these kinds of non-single-occupied-vehicle projects were officially made eligible for federal funding and now that funding is largely tied to air-quality standards.
The profession today is only moving forward, as we all see regularly in the news. Telework and ride-matching are increasing with smart phones and social networking. Bikesharing, parking management, and LEED environmental standards are some of the many factors contributing to the work’s growing influence and success in making people’s lives better.