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The first dedicated gas station in the US was opened in 1905 in St. Louis, Missouri. Before it came to be, there weren’t any gas stations, and at one point there weren’t even any internal combustion engine vehicles. Before trains, for land travel, there were domesticated animals and people rode in wagons and carts. They also rode on some domesticated animals or walked. Of course, there were sailing ships and some boats that could be paddled, rowed, or poled. Without any motors or fuel available, naturally, there was no aviation.
In an article I wrote in 2024, there were some musings about the great loss of value internal combustion engine vehicles face in the approaching future. Part of the fun with technology is trying to predict what new technologies will take root and last or which ones will pop up and fade quickly. Internal combustion engine vehicles may be on their way out not simply because of the nature of trends, but for very good reasons. “Of course, cars, trucks, SUVS, mopeds, scooters, and motorcycles powered by fossil fuels do emit toxic air pollution that harms the planet and human health. So, there is a rather pressing urgency to get rid of them.”
