Is a 'Life After Cars' Really Possible? (Sarah Goodyear)

Is a 'Life After Cars' Really Possible? (Sarah Goodyear)

From The Brake: A Streetsblog Podcast by StreetsblogUSA

November 3, 2025 · 25 min

About this episode

Sarah Goodyear discusses her new book on rethinking transportation and the impact of cars on society.

What will it take to wake more of the world up to the dangers of mass automobility — and could a book be help Americans imagine a future beyond car dominance? That's what Sarah Goodyear and her co-authors are hoping as they release their new book "Life After Cars: Freeing Ourselves From the Tyranny of the Automobile." Along with Doug Gordon and Aaron Naperstek, with whom she co-founded the legendary "War on Cars" podcast, she's bringing the conversation about transportation reform to a new audience, and hoping to give even veteran advocates new tools to talk about why we need to radically rethink our streets. We sat down with Goodyear at the Vision Zero Cities conference in New York City last week to dig deep into the research about how, in her words, "cars ruin" so much of our world, why we can't dismantle other forms of violence without confronting our violent transportation system, and the one politician she most wants to pick up this book.

People in this episode

Guest: Sarah Goodyear

Topics covered

  • transportation reform
  • automobility
  • urban planning
  • violence
  • advocacy

Keywords

  • mass automobility
  • transportation reform
  • Vision Zero
  • urban planning
  • car dominance

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Life After Cars: Freeing Ourselves From the Tyranny of the Automobile

Places: New York City

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