Author name: Steven Edwards

Mainly a bid to reduce road deaths, but recent changes in the way that people move around cities, such as the growing popularity of cycling, is also behind the new restrictionsFrom 11 May, the maximum speed on the majority of Spanish streets will be set at 30km/h. According to an estimate by the DGT state traffic authority, the new measure will affect between 60% and 70% of roads, although this percentage will of course vary from city to city, according to El Pais.

The measure comes after a royal decree was approved by the central government in November, and will be implemented on single-lane roads in each direction of travel. Roads that have a sidewalk at the same height will be limited to 20km/h, while those that have two or more lanes in each direction of traffic will have their speeds limited to 50km/h.

Matt Baynham, head of sustainability at Islabikes, said: “With more home deliveries than ever, and more vans clogging our streets, we are keen to improve air quality and reduce congestion in our home town.”

If the trial is successful, it is hoped the service will expand and become permanent, while providing a template for entrepreneurs in other small towns who are interested in delivering goods by bike.

Markus Stitz’s most recent film, Built to Last, takes place over seven different locations within the Cateran Ecomuseum. The 10-minute documentary launches along with seven new cycling itineraries designed for road, mountain, gravel, and touring bikes as part of Travel for All Our Tomorrows with the aim of developing new regenerative tourism experiences within the area.

The billboard posters criticise the car industry for misleading adverts that have driven up demand for polluting vehicles and private car use – resulting in increased carbon emissions from road transport and worsening air pollution and congestion in towns and cities.

Crammed, slammed, riding the curb. No amount of creative parking seems to change the basic calculus for Tesla employees.
Way too many cars are trying to squeeze into too few spots and it adds up to quite a problem.
CBS technology analyst Larry Magid said, “It is ironic. This is a car company that doesn’t have enough space for the cars.”
Sky Drone 5 was flown above Tesla’s Palo Alto headquarters on Wednesday afternoon and showed that every inch of available space was filled.
And it also showed a crazy quilt of cars, in both the traditional parking spots and the lanes in-between.

The French government is aiming to encourage more people to ditch the car and start pedalling, in an attempt to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.

In the new initiative, if it is adopted by the authorities, will let resides trade in their vehicles in exchange for a €2,500 (£2,155) grant to buy an electric-powered bike, Reuters reports.

Roger Harrabin BBC environment analyst

Multi-billion pound plans for roads and railways in the UK are being reviewed, as travel patterns shift in response to the Covid pandemic.

It comes as BBC research suggests 43 of the UK’s biggest employers won’t bring workers back to the office full-time.
Traffic is expected to be below the long term average.
The BBC has learned that civil servants are studying transport expansion plans to see which are still viable.
Stephen Joseph, a visiting professor at the University of Hertfordshire, told BBC News: “Of course they’re going to have to review their investment – the Treasury will be asking them to justify it – and some schemes just can’t be justified.”
The government has been approached for comment. It hasn’t revealed details of any schemes that might potentially be cut.
The Prime Minister has previously re-committed himself to £100bn spending on HS2 rail, which was designed in part to relieve congestion on the Euston to Birmingham route.

The French Ministry of Ecologial Transition has announced plans to create a subsidy for packages delivered by cargo bike.
The proposals, which could become active by June of this year, are set to provide up to two euros per package for the first 500,000 in the inaugural year, then up to €1.30 for 1.5 million packages in year 2, and €0.6 for 3 million packages in the third year. These funds will be paid to those providing the delivery service.
Funded by France’s CEE energy saving certificates scheme, the subsidy will support the shift away from van-based delivery toward cargo bikes with the three year financial assistance. Thus far, four test cities are to enjoy the benefit; Angers Loire; Greater Reims; Paris-Est-Marne et Bois and the Grenoble-Alpes.

When designing neighbourhoods, the aspiration should be for everyone to live within a short walk, cycle or scoot of such amenities and all basic facilities, for example significant green space and a transport hub for onward connections, when and if required.
For decades, planning has been about mobility: helping people get from point A to point B as quickly as possible. It’s been about ‘how far you can go’ in a given amount of time, rather than ‘how much you can get to’ in that time.
This webinar will explore how planning and land use frameworks can support proximity planning and so support the move to net zero:
• a focus on access and people’s needs, not their speed of travel, especially now that working and living patterns have been significantly – and permanently – disrupted

• will proximity planning prioritise efficiency – is this just another framework that values speed over access? How will it work equitably?

• does the current planning framework support proximity planning? Are changes needed?

• the relative cost of transport investments – pedestrians and cycling infrastructure is relatively cheap and represents excellent value

• will the overall demand for travel will decline as key services and jobs become closer and more accessible?

• will local town and centres replace urban cores as key? Evidence shows that demand has risen for green, multi-use neighbourhoods outside traditional business districts