Off When Idoling.

So I’m very familiar with idling vehicles, mostly from my time on buses with bus drivers who pull over to stop and check their phones or run into a fast food place, leaving me to wonder if I should jump in the front seat and take over. I’ve walked by plenty of delivery vehicles that were rumbling in place, and once or twice I might have called someone to ask if their phone was still running, but that’s another story. There was even the time I was in line at a gas station and the guy in front of me refueled his car while it was still running, and I’m glad it got really good MPGs because we could have been there all day. And I don’t want to brag, oh, wait, I do want to brag that I go pick up takeout at least a couple of times a week and never leave my car running when I do it. It just seems like good sense, but something I never thought about before is the added air pollution of all those idling vehicles. Combustion vehicles pollute the air enough as it is and letting them idle just adds to it, and a lot of it is site-specific pollution. Also I learned not long ago that when those motorized scooters people use to get around will give off a piercing wail when their batteries run down, and noise pollution may not get into your lungs but it can ruin the atmosphere if one’s losing life right outside your sidewalk cafe.
Anyway I’m pretty tickled that in New York City letting vehicles idle more than three minutes is against the law and residents can not only report idling vehicles but get a cut of the fine. Ordinary citizens who report a first-time offender can get $87.50–or a quarter of the total $350 charge. And making it even better is the spokesperson for the anti-idling campaign:

Source: AdAgeIt’s a nice day to stop and start again if you don’t want it hot in the city. If you want to be a lover save me now, don’t break me down, and please, someone, stop that scooter from letting out its rebel yell because I can’t take any more, more, more..

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11 Comments

  1. Bookstooge

    And thus, the citizens of New York begin turning on each other instead of uniting against this monstrous intrusion against their personal freedoms.

    I hope they cannibalize each other!
    Bookstooge recently posted…The Great Hunt (Wheel of Time #2) ★★★★★My Profile

    Reply
    1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      Next thing you know they’ll outlaw turning right on a red light.

      Reply
  2. Arionis

    I’m guessing auto-start is not going to be a big selling point anymore for the car dealers of New York.
    Arionis recently posted…Why Don’t You Make Like A Tree And Get Outta Here?My Profile

    Reply
    1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      Maybe not, but remote start might catch on if someone knows they’re gonna make it to their car in less than three minutes.

      Reply
  3. Rivergirl

    Is that for real?
    I hope so… because really, best PSA ever!

    Reply
  4. rivergirl

    Is that for real?
    I hope so… because really, best PSA ever!

    Reply
    1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      It is for real and it just cracked me up that Billy Idol is doing it. Sure, he’s kind of a publicity hound, but, hey, he’s made shutting off your car about as cool as it can be.

      Reply
  5. Kristine Laco

    What a great ad campaign! I think turning on your fellow citizens is a bit much… let them collect bottles for money instead. Cleans the streets and lines their pockets.
    Kristine Laco recently posted…Give Me A ClueMy Profile

    Reply
    1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      Yeah, requiring people to turn in their fellow citizens hits a sour note for me–sorry, Billy!–but I do like the idea of encouraging people to pick up bottles for money.

      Reply
  6. Ann Koplow

    Sorry for being so idle that I neglected to comment on this post. You’re my idol, Chris!

    Reply
    1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      You’re my idol too, Ann–I especially admire your strength in times when many of us are idle.

      Reply

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