How car culture colonised our thinking – and our language | Language | The Guardian
We say this because we’ve become accustomed to thinking about the street in “traffic logic”. For centuries, streets used to be a place with a multiplicity of purposes: talk, trade, play, work and moving around. It’s only in the past century that it has become a space for traffic to drive through as quickly and efficiently as possible. This idea is so pervasive that it has colonised our thinking.
• This is an edited extract from Movement: How to Take Back Our Streets and Transform Our Lives by Thalia Verkade and Marco te Brömmelstroet, translated by Fiona Graham
If Sadiq Khan really is a green mayor, he should stop the Silvertown tunnel | Diyora Shadijanova | The Guardian
‘I am the first green mayor of London,” Sadiq Khan proclaimed last year during the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow. The Labour party mayor has built a reputation for tackling air pollution. In 2019, he introduced ultra-low emission zones in the nation’s capital. New cycle infrastructure has appeared throughout the city, alongside cycling training courses, and London is brimming with electric buses. It’s no surprise that since 2016, the year Khan was elected, air pollution in London has plunged dramatically.
Increase costs of parking permits to reflect societal impact – transportxtra
New analysis of parking bay permits and suspensions has revealed how cities in the UK “heavily incentivise” the ownership of private vehicles, according to climate change charity Possible.
It is 115 times more expensive to suspend a parking bay than pay for a parking permit, suggests research by Possible of parking in England’s 10 biggest cities.
Plusieurs voitures vandalisées avec l’inscription “SUV climaticide” à Watermael-Boitsfort – bx1.be
Aurélie Vanwelde
Mauvaise surprise, la semaine dernière, pour plusieurs riverains de Watermael-Boitsfort. Plusieurs véhicules ont été victimes d’actes de vandalisme. Cela s’est passé “au croisement de l’avenue des Criquets et de la rue des Archives”,
But how would builders be able to work without a van? Oh, hang on… – Kim Harding – Twitter
@kim_harding
But how would builders be able to work without a van? Oh, hang on…
Mail’s cycling number plates poll story “misleading and unreliable”, says Cycling UK | road.cc
The charity has raised a complaint with press watchdog IPSO after the Mail claimed that there is wide public support for tougher cycling rules – by citing the results of a Fair Fuel UK survey
Cycling UK has raised a complaint with press watchdog IPSO over what the charity believes was a “misleading and unreliable” MailOnline article which suggested that there is wide public support for tougher cycling regulations such as mandatory registration plates for bikes.
Heatwave in China is the most severe ever recorded in the world – newscientist.com
Michael Le Page 23 August 2022
Low rainfall and record-breaking heat across much of China are having widespread impacts on people, industry and farming. River and reservoir levels have fallen, factories have shut because of electricity shortages and huge areas of crops have been damaged. The situation could have worldwide repercussions, causing further disruption to supply chains and exacerbating the global food crisis.
People in large parts of China have been experiencing two months of extreme heat. Hundreds of places have reported temperatures of more than 40°C (104°F), and many records have been broken. Subway stations have set up rest areas where people can recover from the heat.
Road user charge plan to fund transport improvements in Greater Cambridge – TransportXtra
Deniz Huseyin 02 September 2022
GCP’s City Access package includes new bus routes as well as orbital and express services, and better coverage in rural area
The Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP) is planning to introduce a road user charge to fund a host of transport improvements.
Under the proposals, those who drive in a Sustainable Travel Zone (STZ) in Cambridge would pay a flat daily charge, unless exempt or eligible for a discount or rebate, between 7am and 7pm on weekdays.
GCP said the road user charge proposals reflect peoples’ feedback to its public consultations. The charge would help to cut the number of car trips in Cambridge…
‘I will never ride a bike again’: why people are giving up on cycling | Cycling | The Guardian
Guardian readers explain how safety concerns have deterred them from travelling by bike
Alfie Packham and Guardian readers
The proportion of adults in England who say they cycle at least once a month has fallen to 13.1%, the lowest figure since records began in 2015-16. Here, readers from around the UK explain why they have given up riding their bikes on the road.
‘Riding at peak traffic times? No, thank you’
Expanding roads does not relieve congestion – Adam Tranter – Twitter
@adamtranter
Expanding roads does not relieve congestion. Braess’ Paradox says that if you add more lanes to a road, congestion usually increases. In 2008, the Katy Freeway in Houston was expanded to 26 lanes at a cost of $2.8 billion, and travel times increased by 30%.