I just got back from a grocery run, and holy crap. The difference in temperature between a greenway in the woods and a sidewalk next to a multilane road is mindboggling. The greenway was almost pleasant. The road felt more like the surface of the sun.
It's almost* as if continuing to coddle drivers by building out more and more roads is actually contributing to the global heat wave we're living in right now. [*sarcasm]
@DrTCombs Urban heat island effect. Responsible for at least some portion of the observed warming; there is a debate as to how much.
Why cannot cars have small solar panels on top to power the ventilation fan all day? I have a window ventilator that does a lot of good on hot days. You put it in the window and close the window except for a crack.
@mike805 the infrastructure we build for cars definitely contributes heavily to the urban heat island. the cars' emissions also play a big role in overall warming, which makes the greenway vs. road temperature difference even more noticeable.
and all the tailpipes of all the jacked up pickups blasting exhaust directly at my internal organs.
it really comes down to too many cars.
