CNBC explains 'How America Got Hooked On Cars,' a driving update

I promised a driving update for today, so I begin with CNBC explaining How America Got Hooked On Cars.

Americans drive much more than in any other country – twice as much as the average German, for example. And the actual experience of driving isn’t quite as romantic as the image. Drivers are often stuck in traffic. Cars pump out pollution. Less walking means less exercise. Cars also can kill people. Some skeptics say, indeed–cars are awesome. But they got a lot of help from favorable policies and strong lobbies. CNBC spoke with some researchers and looked at numbers to get the full picture of why Americans became so dependent on cars.

This video reminds me of both CityNerd explains 'All the Ways Car Dependency Is Wrecking Us' and CityNerd explains 'Why Traffic Is Worse Than Ever (and can NYC fix it?)', both of which I used as regular posts and not as driving updates. It also reminds me of the history of suburbia in The End of Suburbia, which I last wrote about in depth in CNBC explains the problems of suburbia and their possible solutions. I don't miss the movie — "Treasures of the Earth: Power" is much more up-to-date, accessible, and positive — but I still want to explore its issues about transportation and land use. At least CNBC explored solutions in an encouraging way.

That's the general situation. Follow over the jump for my personal update.


Ahsoka the Grey passed 2,000 miles on Friday, February 20, 2026. That's 171 days since she passed 1,000 miles on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, which yields averages of 5.85 miles per day, 178.36 per standard month, and 2,134.50 miles per standard year. This is more than the 4.74 miles per day, 144.55 miles per standard month, and 1,729.86 miles per standard year my wife and I drove Ahsoka since we bought the car on January 27, 2025 and September 2, 2025. It is also more than the 3.96 miles per day, 120.70 miles per standard month, and 1,444.42 miles per standard year my wife and I drove Snow Bear between Friday, August 16, 2024 and January 27, 2025, the comparable period last year. I expected something like this would occur.

Third, my wife or I would be driving Ahsoka the Gray on the days I wasn't driving to work, so she would accrue more of the shopping miles. Fourth, my wife injured herself on December 1st and couldn't drive, so I've been driving Ahsoka since. Pearl had been on the verge of turning over 71,000 miles since the first week of December, which was when I had been expecting to write this report. I finally drove her yesterday, delaying this entry by a month. I don't expect the last item to happen again.

That the effect would be this big surprised me. It shouldn't have. In addition to my driving Ahsoka more, my wife is, too, now that she can drive again, than she did before her injury. She may be going on fewer shopping trips, but she has physical therapy scheduled three times a week. That adds up and makes up for my driving Pearl to work again. That written, my wife's physical therapy sessions should end well before Ahsoka's next driving update and spring and summer will replace winter, so I expect the mileages should drop at the next report.

I haven't done a combined driving update since CNBC explains 'Why Automakers Are Invading Your Privacy,' a double driving update on the last day of August 2024, a year-and-one-half ago. I should have done one for 'The Pandemic Made People Worse Drivers,' a driving update, but my diabetes sapped my energy. Therefore, I'll have to write two of them to make up for lost time.

First, Snow Bear's odometer registered 13,050 miles on August 30, 2024 and 13,649 miles on her when we traded her in on January 27, 2025, for 599 miles. Add that to the 1,001 miles my wife and I drove Ahsoka between January 27th and September 2nd of 2025 and that's 1600 miles during 368 days, an average of 4.35 miles per day, 132.61 miles per standard month, and 1,586.96 miles per standard year. Meanwhile, Pearl the Prius went from 65,000 miles on August 28, 2024 to 70,000 miles on September 11, 2025 for 5,000 miles during 382 days, yielding averages of 13.09 miles per day, 399.21 miles per standard month, and 4,777.49 miles per standard year. Combined, my wife and I drove our vehicles 17.44 miles per day, 531.82 miles per standard month, and 6,364.45 miles per standard year. That's slightly less than the 17.93 miles per day, 447.5 miles per standard month, 6,543.34 miles per standard year, and 6,561.27 per leap year we drove both cars between January 2024 and August 2024.

Next, Pearl's odometer registered 71,569 on Friday, February 20th, 1,569 miles since last September 11th, 162 days earlier, yielding averages of 9.69 miles per day, 295.40 miles per standard month, and 3,535.09 miles per year. Added to Ahsoka's averages of 5.85 miles per day, 178.36 per standard month, and 2,134.50 miles per standard year between September 2nd and February 20th, those result in 15.54 miles per day, 473.76 miles per standard month, and 5,669.59 miles per year. I may have driven Ahsoka more, but I drove Pearl so much less that our total miles dropped. We are definitely not contributing to the trend of Americans driving more!

Travel on all roads and streets increased in December. The 12-month moving average was up 0.05% month-over-month and was up 0.90% year-over-year...By December 2025, the 12-month moving average reached a new all-time high for a ninth straight month.

Stay tuned for this year's version of Star Trek vs. Star Wars at the Saturn Awards as I examine the nominees for Best Science Fiction Television Series.