{"version":"1.1.0","producer":"fm.getcarcurious","layer":"official","episode":{"title":"PREVIEW: Urban Planning Pop with Pondless","url":"http://getcarcurious.com/episodes/preview-urban-planning-pop-with-pondless","audioUrl":"https://pdst.fm/e/traffic.libsyn.com/secure/waroncars/TWC_BONUS_063026_v1_TEASER.mp3?dest-id=807818","description":"***This is a preview of a Patreon-exclusive bonus episode. For complete access to this and all of our bonus content, plus ad-free versions of regular episodes, merch discounts, presale tickets to live shows, and more, become a Patreon supporter of The War on Cars.*** The musical artist known as Pondless, who as a civilian goes by the name of Aaron Oliver, writes and performs pop songs about urban planning. If that sounds kind of out there, well, so is he, in the best way possible. We talked with him about why this country is divided into Houstons and New York Cities, why Boston does not exist, and how he came to write a love song to Robert Moses.  Pondless is @itspondless on Instagram and TikTok.  Our bestselling new book, Life After Cars: Freeing Ourselves from the Tyranny of the Automobile, published by Thesis, an imprint of Penguin Random House, is available wherever books are sold. www.thewaroncars.org  "},"annotations":[{"id":456048,"startTime":113.0,"endTime":130.5,"type":"concept","title":"suburbanization","url":"/glossary/suburbanization","quote":"So many of them, the original format is basically gone, whether it's by suburbanization or by freeway construction, and it kind of led me to write this song.","canonicalId":"concept:suburbanization","priority":0.6,"confidence":0.95,"source":"gemini-3.5-flash","data":{"explanation":"The systemic growth and movement of populations from central urban areas to low-density, car-dependent peripheral suburbs. In the United States, this shift was heavily accelerated in the post-WWII era by federal housing policies, highway construction, and the mass adoption of the personal automobile.","simplifiedExplanation":"The process of people moving away from city centers into spread-out neighborhoods called suburbs. This style of development usually requires everyone to own a car to get around because homes, schools, and shops are built far apart.","sourceStartTime":113.0,"sourceEndTime":130.5}},{"id":456049,"startTime":168.0,"endTime":174.5,"type":"term","title":"NIMBY","url":"/glossary/nimby","quote":"I know that I'm not trying to be all nimby here. No, no, no, that's okay.","canonicalId":"term:nimby","priority":0.5,"confidence":0.9,"source":"gemini-3.5-flash","data":{"explanation":"An acronym for \"Not In My Back Yard,\" describing residents who oppose new real estate developments, infrastructure, or transit projects in their immediate neighborhood, even if they support them in theory elsewhere. In urban planning, NIMBYism often reinforces car-centric zoning by blocking dense housing and public transit.","simplifiedExplanation":"A term for people who don't want new buildings, apartments, or train stations built near their homes, even if they agree those things are good for the city overall. It stands for \"Not In My Back Yard.\"","sourceStartTime":168.0,"sourceEndTime":174.5}},{"id":456050,"startTime":177.0,"endTime":183.8,"type":"person","title":"Jane Jacobs","url":"/glossary/jane-jacobs","quote":"Yeah, but I think we can agree with Jane Jacobs on there is like a nice comfortable density of things.","canonicalId":"person:jane-jacobs","priority":0.7,"confidence":0.98,"source":"gemini-3.5-flash","data":{"explanation":"An influential American-Canadian journalist, author, and activist who permanently altered the field of urban planning with her 1961 book *The Death and Life of Great American Cities*. She championed community-led, diverse, pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods and famously organized grassroots opposition to car-centric highway projects in New York City.","simplifiedExplanation":"A famous writer and activist who fought to protect neighborhoods from being destroyed by giant highways in the mid-20th century. She believed cities should be built for people walking and living in them, not just for cars driving through them.","sourceStartTime":177.0,"sourceEndTime":183.8}}],"speakers":[{"id":"s1","name":"Doug Gordon","role":"host"},{"id":"s2","name":"Sarah Goodyear","role":"host"}],"transcripts":[{"url":"http://getcarcurious.com/episodes/preview-urban-planning-pop-with-pondless/transcript.vtt","type":"text/vtt"}],"alignmentMode":"scalar","fallbackOffset":0.0}