Automobiles Freed Us from the Tyranny of Horses

[Draggingtree]

Automobiles Freed Us from the Tyranny of Horses

3 HOURS AGO Ryan McMaken

Thanks to the automobile, Americans live in an age of extremely inexpensive transportation, by historical measures. 

In the United States in 2015, there was approximately one motor vehicle per 1.21 people. With the exception of the small, wealthy city states of San Marino and Monaco, the United States employs more motor vehicles than any other country. 

Even if we make similar calculations using just "passenger cars," the number of vehicles per person remains quite high: fewer than 2.3 people per passenger car. 

People who don't like automobiles tell us this is a symptom of bad urban planning and a dysfunctional American obsession with cars. This may or may not be the case, but the number of automobiles is also a function of a society's wealth. 

It's not a mere coincidence that Monaco, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein — countries with some of the world 's highest levels of wealth and income — also have the largest numbers of vehicles per capita. 

We can also see this reflected in American use of motor vehicles over time                   https://mises.org/wire/automobiles-freed-us-tyranny-horses