Dave Cooke
@ucsdave.bsky.social
Using my white male privilege to rabble rouse companies and govt agencies into doing more. Midwest-grown, California-schooled, Senator-less citizen of the Douglass Commonwealth.
This is a personal acct, but I'll still be mad about transportation issues.
This is a personal acct, but I'll still be mad about transportation issues.
There's no incentive for Waymo to reduce congestion -- as you note, it's about heavy utilization of their fleet. Uber and Lyft on the other hand, explicitly depend on supply side (as you note) which requires increased fleet size, not fleet utilization. But # vehicles & congestion aren't the same.
November 12, 2025 at 9:34 PM
There's no incentive for Waymo to reduce congestion -- as you note, it's about heavy utilization of their fleet. Uber and Lyft on the other hand, explicitly depend on supply side (as you note) which requires increased fleet size, not fleet utilization. But # vehicles & congestion aren't the same.
The next surface transportation bill can be that vehicle for change. As my colleague @kevshen.bsky.social notes, we have an opportunity to prioritize the public investments needed in not just infrastructure, but the services required to improve mobility choices for all: blog.ucs.org/kshen/surfac...
Surface Transportation Reauthorization: What You Need to Know
And ways you can take action.
blog.ucs.org
November 12, 2025 at 6:01 PM
The next surface transportation bill can be that vehicle for change. As my colleague @kevshen.bsky.social notes, we have an opportunity to prioritize the public investments needed in not just infrastructure, but the services required to improve mobility choices for all: blog.ucs.org/kshen/surfac...
If we are serious about addressing the harms of the transportation system, we must address the insane amount of $$$ we spend on highways. Ignoring that is literally a road to making things worse. We must orient our transportation system around people, not cars. www.ucs.org/resources/fr...
Freedom to Move
We need a transportation system that centers the communities it’s meant to serve.
www.ucs.org
November 12, 2025 at 5:57 PM
If we are serious about addressing the harms of the transportation system, we must address the insane amount of $$$ we spend on highways. Ignoring that is literally a road to making things worse. We must orient our transportation system around people, not cars. www.ucs.org/resources/fr...
I guess what I'm getting at is that the Lightning being flat is neither a surprise nor really off pace, so the issue raised is not new. My point was regarding the environment for this non-announcement.
November 6, 2025 at 9:37 PM
I guess what I'm getting at is that the Lightning being flat is neither a surprise nor really off pace, so the issue raised is not new. My point was regarding the environment for this non-announcement.
US EV sales are up 9% YTD in total. Most of Ford's EV drop is in the Transit -- its non-commercial offerings are up 11% YTD.
November 6, 2025 at 9:26 PM
US EV sales are up 9% YTD in total. Most of Ford's EV drop is in the Transit -- its non-commercial offerings are up 11% YTD.
Looking at YTD because September pulled forward sales makes it even weirder timing:
Lightning: 24,577 (2025 J-O) v. 24,670 (2024 J-O)
Mach-e: 44,868 (2025 J-O) v. 38,939 (2024 J-O)
It's a small share of the F-150 uptake, but that was always likely. At 1/3 the hybrid uptake that has to be ~planned.
Lightning: 24,577 (2025 J-O) v. 24,670 (2024 J-O)
Mach-e: 44,868 (2025 J-O) v. 38,939 (2024 J-O)
It's a small share of the F-150 uptake, but that was always likely. At 1/3 the hybrid uptake that has to be ~planned.
November 6, 2025 at 9:18 PM
Looking at YTD because September pulled forward sales makes it even weirder timing:
Lightning: 24,577 (2025 J-O) v. 24,670 (2024 J-O)
Mach-e: 44,868 (2025 J-O) v. 38,939 (2024 J-O)
It's a small share of the F-150 uptake, but that was always likely. At 1/3 the hybrid uptake that has to be ~planned.
Lightning: 24,577 (2025 J-O) v. 24,670 (2024 J-O)
Mach-e: 44,868 (2025 J-O) v. 38,939 (2024 J-O)
It's a small share of the F-150 uptake, but that was always likely. At 1/3 the hybrid uptake that has to be ~planned.
We must demand more. Here's a start at what that looks like: www.ucs.org/resources/fr...
Freedom to Move
We need a transportation system that centers the communities it’s meant to serve.
www.ucs.org
November 5, 2025 at 3:36 PM
We must demand more. Here's a start at what that looks like: www.ucs.org/resources/fr...
With affordability and the rising costs of living such a huge issue, the next surface transportation bill should be designed to HALT the wealth transfer from the American public to the #oil and #automotive industries, not accelerate it.
November 5, 2025 at 3:35 PM
With affordability and the rising costs of living such a huge issue, the next surface transportation bill should be designed to HALT the wealth transfer from the American public to the #oil and #automotive industries, not accelerate it.
The biggest contributor to highway costs aren't just drivers -- it's all of us via sales, property, and income taxes. So if the public is paying for this crap, maybe we should get something better from our transportation officials than just "one more lane oughta do it"? blog.ucs.org/dave-cooke/t...
The User-Pay Myth: We ALL Pay for Our Roads, Not Just Drivers
It’s time we think harder about what it is we're paying for, for whom and why, and how we pay for it.
blog.ucs.org
November 5, 2025 at 3:27 PM
The biggest contributor to highway costs aren't just drivers -- it's all of us via sales, property, and income taxes. So if the public is paying for this crap, maybe we should get something better from our transportation officials than just "one more lane oughta do it"? blog.ucs.org/dave-cooke/t...
Taxing #EVs isn't going to fix the problem, but they're an easy scapegoat. The problem is the US doesn't want to pay for the true cost of our broken car-centric transportation system. Highway construction costs are out of control: we can't keep running on this treadmill. blog.ucs.org/dave-cooke/t...
The Truth Is Out There: The Cost of Roads Is Bankrupting the Highway Trust Fund, Not Electric Vehicles
The continued build out of the freeway system creates an ever-increasing cost spiral for infrastructure built.
blog.ucs.org
November 5, 2025 at 3:24 PM
Taxing #EVs isn't going to fix the problem, but they're an easy scapegoat. The problem is the US doesn't want to pay for the true cost of our broken car-centric transportation system. Highway construction costs are out of control: we can't keep running on this treadmill. blog.ucs.org/dave-cooke/t...
Like, sure PHEVs add another close to 10% of the market capable of a way-too-small share of electricity usage (www.transportenvironment.org/articles/plu...), but the bulk of the market still exclusively uses gas/diesel.
Plug-in hybrids pollute almost as much as petrol cars – EU data
Even in electric mode, PHEVs still burn fuel and emit 68g of CO2/km, on average. Their hidden fuel consumption costs the average PHEV driver €500 extra a…
www.transportenvironment.org
October 30, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Like, sure PHEVs add another close to 10% of the market capable of a way-too-small share of electricity usage (www.transportenvironment.org/articles/plu...), but the bulk of the market still exclusively uses gas/diesel.
Hybrids are also fossil-fuel only.
October 30, 2025 at 3:08 PM
Hybrids are also fossil-fuel only.
It's from the Manhattan Institute, so it's not like they're seeking accuracy in anything they publish.
October 20, 2025 at 6:41 PM
It's from the Manhattan Institute, so it's not like they're seeking accuracy in anything they publish.