Getting ourselves out of our fossil fuel pickle is going to require some significant changes in the way we drive and otherwise get around. Electric & hydrogen vehicles may be the winners in automobile design (provided we can guarantee a safe and clean method of producing the electricity and H2).But one often overlooked piece of the puzzle is the need to diversify the transportation options available to people, a change which has more to do with how we design our neighborhoods and cities than with designing better cars.In most of the United States, you might literally starve to death without access to a car, regardless of what kind of fuel it runs on. In addition to the obvious environental and asthetic trouble this puts the country in, it's a national security concern, not to mention an economic hardship for those with low levels of income as well as a health concern (no walking = fat people).Designing neighborhoods so that it is possible to walk or bike some of the time makes life a lot easier for people and gives them the opportunity to avoid the stress of parking and gridlock with a simple, healthy walk to the store. You might even be able to avoid a gym membership by biking to work. As long as we centralize most commerce in downtown areas (another good idea), commuter trains, with train stations in walkable neighborhoods can give the majority of people an alternative to a stressful driving commute.Europeans may be nodding their heads in aggreement, being already accustomed to such things.Before I start sounding too "anti-car" note that despite Europe's vastly superior variety in infrastructure, per capita car ownership is practically the same as the United States (see here for data)In other words, giving people more options is no threat whatsoever to automobile companies. In fact, a healthier, less stressed consumer base can only help the economy and the companies that depend on it.These sorts of changes are simple and low-tech. They also buy time for us to make the larger technological progress needed to improve our fleet of vehicles.Although I can't get enough of awesome innovations like the Tesla and the h2 bmw, I'd be happy in the short term if people kept driving old gasoline cars as long as they just didn't drive them so darn much.