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Galaxus is selling cars: order today, drive tomorrow
by Alex Hämmerli
Does driving a car make you stupid?
4.6.2019
Translation: machine translated
In my neighbourhood, the traffic signs are often covered in stickers. I recently took a closer look at one of these stickers. It says that driving makes you stupid.
That's not very nice. As a driver, I would be offended. Please note the subjunctive. Because I don't drive a car. Ergo, I'm not stupid. If the thesis on the stickers is actually true. Does driving really make you stupid? And if that's the case, why have we started selling cars at Galaxus? That would mean we're selling you for stupid.
Shiny eyes, clammy hands
I don't have a driving licence. Never did. When I was 18, there was only one topic on my mates' minds: the driving licence, the ticket, the licence card or whatever you want to call that piece of paper. With shiny little eyes and sweaty palms, they say things like: "After the driving test it's off, then it's just drive, drive, drive. And then you're sure to get a girlfriend." Cars and girls - the wet dream of 18-year-old boys.
And the same old conversations about theory tests, learner's licences, driving lessons and so on. You're on a monothematic journey. And me? I dream about girls too, of course. But driving doesn't seem to be in my DNA. It simply doesn't interest me. I don't want to know who has right of way when, where, how and why. Calculating braking distances? I don't care. I have no sense of freedom in these tin cans. I'm a hunter-gatherer and walk. Or take the tram. There are girls there too.
A car-free family
Today they all drive, the mates from back then. I still walk or take the tram. And I notice that this is standard in my family. Only my father was a car driver. But it never really worked out for him with the girls. But that's another story. My mum, my sister, her two grown-up children - all pedestrians. And there's more. My wife or the partner of my car-free niece? You guessed it: no one drives, no one has a driving licence. We are a largely car-free family. Coincidence? It's certainly not something you plan.
Standing, driving, standing
Public transport in Switzerland is one of the best this country has to offer. And my whole family lives in the city. We don't need a car to get from A to B. It's easier and usually quicker without one. You don't have to have inline skates to prove it:
Does driving a car make you stupid? Well, looking at the video in the article above ... Sorry Simon, don't take it personally. It's not your fault, it's the car's fault.
Did I write earlier that cars all drive today? Wrong. They're all stationary. Or drive in circles looking for a parking space. Then the car is parked at the office or at home as overpriced scrap metal. It is moved back and forth between home and work for one hour a day and is parked for 23 hours. What would our cities look like if they weren't permanently parked up? What would it sound and smell like without traffic? I once read somewhere that the car is Mr and Mrs Swiss's most important possession after their own home. I still haven't realised why. Does driving a car make you stupid? I don't think so. In the long term, it's probably the other way round.
Only stupid people (still) drive cars
Whether Zurich, Basel or Geneva, our cities are all the same. They were built for cars, not for people. Traffic has to flow and yet it still stands still. That makes no sense. We need to rethink the city, we need to rethink mobility. Population explosion, density stress, mobile society, climate change - I think we need to rethink the way we think first. Then the rest.
Don't share my opinion at all? Very well! Then don't follow my author profile here.
Patrick Bardelli
Senior Editor
Patrick.Bardelli@digitecgalaxus.chFrom radio journalist to product tester and storyteller, jogger to gravel bike novice and fitness enthusiast with barbells and dumbbells. I'm excited to see where the journey'll take me next.
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