Peter D. Norton
Peter Norton is associate professor of history in the Department of Engineering and Society at the University of Virginia, and the author of Autonorama: The Illusory Promise of High-Tech Driving.
Big-time investors like to say that “data is the new oil.” Google, Facebook and other companies have drilled the digital oil fields of personal data, achieving rates of growth 20th-century oil barons would have envied.
But to collect personal data, such companies have to present themselves as something else. Google is a data-collection company that offers internet search and other services; Facebook is a data-collection company that offers a social-media platform. To these companies, the services they provide are means to an end – and if the means and the end diverge, the end must prevail.
Dire warning on climate change ‘is being ignored’ amid war and economic turmoil | Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) | The Guardian
The third segment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report is being overshadowed, just like the previous one
Fiona Harvey
Scientists fear that their last-ditch climate warnings are going unheeded amid international turmoil caused by the war in Ukraine, and soaring energy prices.
The third segment of the landmark scientific report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – which could be the last comprehensive assessment of climate science to be published while there is still time to avoid the worst ravages of climate breakdown – will be published on Monday, warning that the world is not shifting quickly enough to a low-carbon economy.
Fundraising for Wheels for Wellbeing, Transport for All, and Disabled People Against Cuts, in memory of Richard and to keep his work going.
I’m Doug Paulley, and I am fundraising in memory of Richard – the Heavy Metal Handcyclist / @CrippledCyclist.
Richard very sadly died on Monday night. (21st March 2022).
Richard was the most amazing, kind-hearted guy. He was a great campaigner for disability rights and justice, particularly for rights of access to cycling infrastructure. He was a skills-multiplier; so many people have gained skills and confidence to challenge injustice because of his encouragement and empowerment. He was so generous with his time and expertise that there is a phalanx of disabled people, particularly cyclists, who can better challenge inaccessible infrastructure and services because of him. His accessible infrastructure Freedom of Information template is just one example of the multitude of ways in which he made such a difference.
Cars take up way too much space in cities. New technology could change that. | The new new economy – vox.com
Timothy B. Lee
When we talk about the problems associated with cars and transportation, we often focus on fatal accidents, or air pollution, or traffic jams.
We less frequently consider how much sheer space cars take up in America’s cities. But let’s pause to give this some thought.
There’s the space the cars themselves occupy. The average car, two hulking tons of steel, is 80 percent empty when it’s being driven by a single person. And most of the day, cars are totally empty, sitting unused. That, of course, requires space for parking: There are a billion parking spots across the United States, four for every car in existence. Plus, there are all the paved roads crissc
The thing about Will Smith slapping Chris Rock is that an ice shelf in what’s supposed to be the stable part of Antarctica just collapsed – Brian Kahn – Twitter
@blkahn · 22h
The thing about Will Smith slapping Chris Rock is that an ice shelf
‘Game changing’ smartphone app gathers evidence of speeding – transportxtra.com
Deniz Huseyin – 28 March 2022
A new app has been developed to allow pedestrians to use their smartphones to gather evidence of speeding vehicles. Speedcam Anywhere generates a ‘video snip’, which is uploaded to the cloud and analysed using Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms. This then creates an analysis sheet, and a link to download their video evidence, which is automatically emailed to the user for uploading to police dashcam web sites.
Trials of the app have resulted in a “favourable reaction” from the police and members of the public, though it has not yet been Type Approved by the Home Office, so cannot issue speeding tickets, say the app developers. In the meantime, it is proposed that evidence from the app can be presented to police forces so they can issue Anti-Social Driving Orders for Section 59 offences, where inconsiderate driving causes alarm and distress.
Travel less, do more (or do what’s necessary, anyway) – transportxtra.com
22 March 2022
Percentage reduction in trips and miles saved per mode (over and above pre-Covid-19 levels) if 50% of June 2021 working from home (WFH) levels are maintained, for those that can (N=1724).5
A timely new report, Less is more: Changing travel in a post-pandemic society, finds that people have been able to adapt significant elements of their daily travel to do what they want by travelling less.
The researchers call on policy makers to:
• Actively manage the return to the office to kickstart more sustainable commuting
• Stimulate a return to public transport
• Prioritise improving pedestrian environments with the funding and attention it deserves
• Encourage leisure cyclists to broaden their cycle use
• Tackle the rise in light goods vehicle traffic
• Support a shift to lower car ownership
Transport Appraisal and Carbon – eventbrite.co.uk – Wed, April 27, 2022 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM BST
Wed, April 27, 2022
12:00 PM – 1:30 PM BST This event is free to attend.
The current system of transport appraisal has been described as not fit for purpose, with many weak, incorrect or outdated assumptions. The climate crisis has brought the failings of the current approach to carbon in particular into sharp focus. The tension between the government’s transport decarbonisation strategy on the one hand and their continued funding of expensive and controversial road schemes on the other, suggests the need for an urgent rethink of the appraisal approach. This webinar will discuss the issues with the current system and how best to reform it.
This is the first in a new series of webinars showcasing the work funded by the Foundation for Integrated Transport (FIT). This webinar includes presentations from FIT’s senior Fellows, Professor Phil Goodwin and Professor John Whitelegg, and a panel discussion, including Professor Jillian Anable, chaired by FIT Trustee Mark Frost.
The cost of changing the US vehicle fleet to 100% EVs is about $15 trillion and will take until ~ 2060 – (((Matthew Lewis))) 1 billion Cal students
@mateosfo
You’ll often here people say things like “we can’t reinvent our cities in time to reduce car usage, it’s too expensive and will take too long, only Elon Musk can save us”
The cost of changing the US vehicle fleet to 100% EVs is about $15 trillion and will take until ~ 2060
The Baby Carriage Blockades – Vision Zero Cities Journal – Medium
Oct 10, 2019 Peter Norton
Stop de Kindermoord in the Netherlands: demonstrators block a dangerous intersection in Amsterdam, October 31, 1972.
Among advocates of safe, sustainable, and bike-friendly mobility, the Netherlands has long been the success story to point to. But in English-speaking countries, and especially in the car-dominated United States, how useful is the Netherlands as an example to emulate? The question has been divisive.
Membership
