Abstract: Cities where people spend one working day a week to pay for an activity that may save only a few hours are inherently Pythonesque. The concept of effective speed allows policy-makers to appreciate the (in)effectiveness of transport options in terms of time savings, by examining the total time associated with transport, including time spent at work to pay for associated costs. Consequently, cars are not necessarily ‘faster’ than alternatives we instinctively think of as slower: public transport, cycling and even walking. Any rational person would agree we should minimise the resources devoted to the essentially unproductive intermediate activity of driving. But economic bean-counters regard this as contributing to our well-being, as it consumes resources, the primary criterion for inclusion in Gross Domestic Product. The paper examines effective speed in Australian cities and presents results from strategic analysis for Perth, Western Australia, highlighting the consequences of 'squandering' a large and increasing part of our individual and collective time and financial resources. Increasing oil prices may soon start to force changes in economic behaviour, including travel, that have potentially profound impacts on our real wellbeing and the form and functioning of our cities. The paper will describe these consequences and outline ways in which adverse impacts can be reduced.