{
"authors": [
"Deborah Gordon",
"Daniel Sperling"
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"centers": [
"Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"Carnegie Europe"
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"primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"programAffiliation": "SCP",
"programs": [
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"Carnegie Oil Initiative"
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}
Source: Getty
Emerging countries must decide if they want to follow developed, auto-dependent nations down an unsustainable path or if they will instead transform their national transportation system to encourage environmentally and economically sound choices.
Source: European Financial Review
We are at a critical crossroad. The global proliferation of vehicles presents many risks and opportunities. One seemingly easy way forward is to adopt last-century approaches that seek to accommodate the high demand for vehicles through cheap oil, free roads, sprawled development, and subsidized home ownership. A preferred alternative course beckons, however, one that promises new, low-carbon, location-efficient, economically productive mobility. Government, industry, and consumers—especially in emerging economies—can reinvent transportation models and employ innovative solutions to avoid a foreboding car monoculture.
Former Director and Senior Fellow, Energy and Climate Program
Gordon was director of Carnegie’s Energy and Climate Program, where her research focuses on oil and climate change issues in North America and globally.
Former Visiting Scholar , Energy and Climate Program
Sperling was a visiting scholar in the Energy and Climate Program at the Carnegie Endowment. He is professor of civil engineering and environmental science and policy at the University of California, Davis. He is also founding director of the university’s Institute of Transportation Studies.
Carnegie India does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
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