#less traffic

Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver have seen drops in vehicle traffic over the last few days as physical distancing measures introduced to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus have kept Canadians closer to home.

Images from Descartes Labs of the major cities and surrounding areas show their average levels of atmospheric nitrogen dioxide (NO2)— a pollutant created by the burning of fossil fuels, such as gasoline — has plummeted compared to a year ago. The New Mexico-based geospatial analysis group shared the data with some news organizations, including CBC and the New York Times.

I like driving through towns like those. I wonder about the people there. Where do they work? Do they go get dinner in a bigger town nearby as a treat once a week? Once a month? Do they know that their holiday decorations make strangers like me smile? Do the kids at the school get all excited to take a field trip to whatever the local history place is? What is the other small town they consider their mortal enemy?