Allan RudwickJun 21, 2024
Tab Combs

I just got back from a grocery run, and holy crap. The difference in temperature between a greenway in the woods and a sidewalk next to a multilane road is mindboggling. The greenway was almost pleasant. The road felt more like the surface of the sun.

It's almost* as if continuing to coddle drivers by building out more and more roads is actually contributing to the global heat wave we're living in right now. [*sarcasm]

Jun 21, 2024 at 7:25pmWeb
Show threadTab CombsJun 22, 2024

For those who really want to explain urban heat to me, save yourself the trouble.

Urban heat is a thing because cities are covered in concrete, and concrete traps and then radiates heat.

Cities are covered in concrete because of cars.

IT'S THE CARS. Cars are the reason cities are hot, noisy, stinky, dirty, and expensive.

Show threadclimate voter/radical oldieJun 23, 2024
@DrTCombs Make cities cities again. Bring back the nineteenth century or earlier.
Show threadRaven667Jun 23, 2024
@tmstreet @DrTCombs two words; horse shit 😁
Show threadiweinJun 23, 2024
@raven667 not only horse… but we agree on the sentiment, right? Let's build cool cities for pedestrians (including those in need of enabling tech).
Show threadPusher of PixelsJun 23, 2024
@DrTCombs and also one reason old cities had narrow streets. Far less direct sun hits the surface
Show threadwillowbl00Jun 23, 2024
@DrTCombs @rmondello the concrete also leads to flooding as there’s no place for the water to drain to.
Show threadViolet MadderJun 23, 2024

@willowbl00 @DrTCombs @rmondello

We need more rail, bad.

Show thread🍵 hollyJun 23, 2024
@violetmadder @willowbl00 @DrTCombs @rmondello More tram tracks on grass please
Show threadTeri Yaki 🖌️🎹🚲💻Jun 23, 2024
@DrTCombs and deadly, bloody killing
Show threadPterryJun 23, 2024
@DrTCombs @drehumdiebolzen also cars produce heat. They burn fossil fuels and at least 70% of the energy generated by that is heat.
Show threadalways tired (moved to chaos)Jun 23, 2024
@Pterry @DrTCombs @drehumdiebolzen After a while it's 100% of the energy that becomes heat. If not earlier, then the next time one brakes to stop.
Show threadcheetah_spottycatJun 23, 2024
@DrTCombs I would say at least they are at least one of the biggest contributing factors. In the end it's a combination of sealed surfaces and wind traps, and the absence of cars alone won't change anything unless you also unseal those surfaces.
Show threadFrancis Mangion (M)Jun 28, 2024
#interesting
Show threadrag. Gustavino BevilacquaJun 21, 2024

@DrTCombs

Also: dark cars become quickly a bubble of air at lava temperature.

And the AC dump it on the pedestrians.

Show threadShadSterlingJun 23, 2024
@GustavinoBevilacqua @DrTCombs any car parked in the sun is a solar oven. We could improve on that; we could do cars better, but we could also do a lot better than cars
Show threadautumn 🐾 hyper-fixated on dogsJun 21, 2024
@DrTCombs i felt this a lot during my last few bike rides. the little bits i did on/near the road were So Hot. 🥵
Show threadTab CombsJun 21, 2024
@autumn the worst is standing next to a line of idling pickups with lift kits, waiting for a walk signal.
the tailpipes are like blast furnaces aimed directly at my internal organs.
Show threadmike805Jun 21, 2024

@DrTCombs Urban heat island effect. Responsible for at least some portion of the observed warming; there is a debate as to how much.

Why cannot cars have small solar panels on top to power the ventilation fan all day? I have a window ventilator that does a lot of good on hot days. You put it in the window and close the window except for a crack.

Show threadTab CombsJun 21, 2024

@mike805 the infrastructure we build for cars definitely contributes heavily to the urban heat island. the cars' emissions also play a big role in overall warming, which makes the greenway vs. road temperature difference even more noticeable.

and all the tailpipes of all the jacked up pickups blasting exhaust directly at my internal organs.

it really comes down to too many cars.

Show threadRobert CassidyJun 21, 2024
@DrTCombs @SRLevine Yeah, there a path through a wash that I frequent and it’s 20F different - from hot and sweaty to I wish I had long sleeves, and half a mile later back to hot and sweaty when I emerge. Pedestrianizing cities around trees and plants will save lives as temps climb.
Show threadx0Jun 22, 2024
@DrTCombs Not completely sure if this is sarcasm, it sounds like it could and couldn't be, but if not, yes concrete and assfalt store and reflect heat, creating a low to the ground heat haze. This is why places have mandated medians in parking lots and trees on the side of roads, because they saw in places like Dallas what happens if you don't I suspect. Plus the people falling on the concrete in Arizona and dying because they were literally burned by the concrete.
Show threadTab CombsJun 22, 2024

@x0
It is sarcasm.

The problem is the cars.

Show threadSerena 🏳️‍🌈Jun 22, 2024
@DrTCombs @x0 Of course it is, concrete stores heat and radiates it. LOL. That’s why it will generally be a couple degrees warmer in a city then out in the country.
Show threadMark StosbergJun 24, 2024

@DrTCombs This weekend I was running down a tree-lined street and it was so pleasant I stopped to take a photo.

More streets covered by tree canopies seems like something we ought to able to figure out.

#UrbanPlanning #PlantATree