Green Wheels

Ryan Avent on the car-sharing industry:

There’s no denying that automobiles are a very convenient way to get around, especially when you’re carrying a lot of stuff. The problem is that when everyone uses one and we structure our lives around them, everything goes to the dogs. But demand for occasional-use vehicles is going to grow. And things like Zipcar probably positively influence dense living and transit ridership, because they make it easier to live a carless life. Ditto for cabs; they’re largely plain old dirty cars, but because they make it easier for households to ditch personal vehicles, they surely have a net green effect.