Driving makes us lazy.

Car ownership makes us lazy. I have lost count of the number of times I have seen someone park right outside their destination, often illegally instead of parking further up the road and walking. Most Torquecars members when asked also agree that having a car has made them a little lazy. People popping in to their local shop are the biggest culprits.

How many journeys are really necessary. I think that at some time we have all taken the car around the corner for speed or if it is raining. Years ago we used to walk to school, now children are delivered to school by car. Is the growing problem of childhood obesity down to the car induced laziness as much as the increased junk food diet.

We need to ask ourselves when was the last time we walked for 30 minutes? Its not a long time and certainly not a long distance but most people would consider taking the car for this short journey, which has some major drawbacks.

1. The wear and tear on the car is much greater on short journeys when the engine does not have time to warm up.
2. It would be another missed opportunity for some gentle exercise.
3. A wak of 30 minutes refreshes the mind, in the car we tend to be distracted more and usually put the radio on. The silent contemplation whilst walking is beneficial and you will often solve problems or be more effective at work.
4. Stress levels are reduced when walking, you are less likely to get raised blood pressure whilst walking compared to driving the same distance.
5. You will be easing both congestion and local pollution levels as any Asthmatic or hay fever sufferer will fully appreciate.
6. You save money.

What though about the extra time cost? When you think about it logically a 30 minute walk is about the same as a 5 minute drive on an uncongested road, the thing is that we do not have uncongested roads. My journey typically takes 10-20 minutes at a crawling pace on most days and they I can spend anoteh 10-20 minutes looking for a parking space. You might live in an uncongested area and If you do I am a little jealous, but with our modern lifestyles do not expect that to always be the case.

Throw away the car keys for short journeys and WALK instead. 2 legs are for walking, if we were born to drive we would have 3 legs, one for each pedal ;)