A European Comparison
Imagine that you live in a small European town about twenty minutes out from the city. Fields of farmland surround your town. You have three transportation options to get out of this town: you can bike (15 minutes) or walk 30 minutes) to the next town; you can take a bus, with a stop five minutes down the street; and you can ask your parents for a ride. The last option isn’t very plausible, since your parents will probably say no. The second option makes more sense, since you can be in the middle of the city in 30 minutes, with extending bus and street car lines reaching into every section of the city and beyond. Even the first option makes sense, since the next town has more shops and businesses, plus a more direct route to the city.
Once you make it to the city, you notice that almost everything is within walking distance, and, if its not, your destination is only a few stops away. The train station is located a few stops from the heart of the city. You could easily take a regional train from the city to the town next to yours, and then take a bus to your town to get home. At the heart of the city, you find the Hauptstrasse, or Main Street. This street is strictly a pedestrian zone; any cars you see will be small delivery vans or police cars. Restaurants and shops line the street, along with historic churches and buildings. City hall and a few governmental buildings are also on this street. Side streets are lined with small houses and apartments, all highly desirable places to live. Once you’re done with shopping or enjoying the night life, you can simply walk to the Bismarckplatz, the central bus/street car stop in the city, and ride public transportation home. All, of course, without a car.
Now imagine that you live in a small town in America. The only way for you to get anywhere is to get on an interstate. Bus lines and stops are virtually nonexistent. Trains are slow and unpredictable. There are few bicycle paths and sidewalks. You and thousands of other people are trying to find parking, which is expensive. On top of that, you pay high gas prices already.
How did these significantly different cultures develop? My mom started a new job recently, and is excited because she can bike the 6 km to work. At a new strip mall in Texas, I couldn’t cross a 6 lane street because there were no sidewalks and no pedestrian lights. In Europe, bicyclists on the street are considered traffic. In the U.S, they are considered nuisances.
Of course, Americans enjoy more living space than Europeans. Sprawling land is available to Americans, evident by huge roads, houses, and cars. In Europe, the houses are smaller and more compact, the roads narrower, and the cars smaller. Can these physical differences account for a radical difference in culture? Has simple need driven Europeans to socialize themselves differently, better utilizing space and public transportation?