Let's face it, much of the Research Library consists of kind of  (okay, very) dry technical reports.  But, whenever possible, we also try to collect quality books aimed at a general audience.  These three recent titles are some of the best we've seen.  They are weighty, discussing some of the most important transportation issues of our time, yet still accessible to the general reader (one is even available in audiobook format).  And, of course, all three are available for checkout at the library.

Bike Battles: A History of Sharing the American Road. By James Longhurst. University of Washington Press, 2015.
Library record
Book Review:
"Bike Battles is a public policy history of accommodations for bicycles in the United States from 1870 to 1970. Explicitly aiming at a general audience and using current controversies as a point of departure...Longhurst has provided an accessible and highly readable story of the bicycle that will be relevant to a wider urban and transportation planners, municipal officials, and especially to those advocating for redesign of roads to include bicycles and other uses."
(Journal of American History Vol. 102, Issue 4, March 2016 pg. 1233.)

Door to door: the magnificent, maddening, mysterious world of transportation.  By Edward Humes. Harper Collins, 2016.
Library record
Book review:
"Veteran writer Humes scrutinizes the complex world of transporting people and goods in this fun, informative read. Beyond tracking the production and delivery of smartphones, coffee, or aluminum cans, Humes raises important questions about materialism...Humes also explores the looming proliferation of driverless cars, which will reduce annual traffic deaths in the U.S. to the hundreds, slash carbon emissions, and eliminate traffic and parking issues. This timely book will inspire many readers to change their habits and their views of the future."
(Booklist. 3/15/2016, Vol. 112, Issue 14, pg. 5.)

Traffic: why we drive the way we do (and what it says about us).  Tom Vanderbilt.  Alfred A. Knopf, 2008.  (Also available in Audiobook format)
Library record
Book Review:
"Everyone gets stuck in traffic at some point, and here freelance journalist Vanderbilt provides a fascinating look at the whys and hows of the traffic we confront on a daily basis. Deeply researched and rich in facts, his sociological study of driving habits and traffic patterns could not come at a better time. Rising fuel costs, deferred road maintenance and construction, increasing populations, and growing congestion mean that traffic is not going to get better...Anyone who drives will not be surprised overall but may be shocked at some of the analysis that is presented here for the first time-and may become a safer driver because of it. Even pedestrians are affected by traffic and should read this book."
(Library Journal. 6/15/2008, Vol. 133, Issue 11, pg. 83.)