And there you have it. The picture neatly illustrates why 'Normal"<sic> people, given the option, currently choose to drive to work.
Given the choice of;
- Inconvenient, cramped, maybe dangerous and possibly wet
Against:
- Inconvenient, comfortable, safe (seeming), warm, dry, coffee/snack availability and the ability to do your make-up or whatever.
I know which the majority of people I used to work with would choose if they could afford it - and mostly they could and did.
Even in a smaller city like Newcastle (NSW) most folk live too far from work to make cycling an option except for enthusiasts. You need good public transportation, maybe with a cycle/ride/cycle capacity. Last time I was in London Brompton folders appeared to have taken over Kings Cross station at rush hour
Richard
[/quote]
Such charming comparisons.
That middle picture of the sardine-like packed train is
Exhibit A of my experience: today, the 3.30pm Geelong-bound train from Southern Cross, aka
"The Mumbai Miracle" of squeezing in 10,000 Indians
and their food delivery bikes (!) and every imaginable worker heaving home. If the train is evidently full, they dare to add 50 more people each stop!! The cramping is horrific. I had my bike with me today, and watched as the train progressively filled with people squeezed hard against it; at three stops, the train was held up because the doors would not shut (somebody was being squashed!)
At Tarneit, a couple of hundred spilled out, dutifully homeward-bound.
Next stop Windham Vale, the train emptied completely — party time!!
There is a problem here, acknowledged by transport and urban planners, albeit after the proverbial horse has walked through the optn age and vanished. Tarneit and Wyndham Vale are case studies in how
not to build distant satellite suburbs to soak up a booming migrant worker population. Bicycles are rarely seen getting on or off Tarneit or Wyndham Vale stations (e-scooters though are more common) because they have no cycling infrastructure at all, other than on-road shared lanes beyond Tarneit that are quite dangerous traversing industry-heavy and traffic- and smog-choked Ravenhall and Laverton heading to the city. People in these two sprawling satellite suburbs are stuck with using their cars to drive to the station (typically under 10km, closer to the station, it is more like 2km to 3km), park there, board the train to city and return in the evening. Buses are available, but are seldom used. While parking at the station adds short-period congestion in peak hour, is spares other arterial roads from more grief. The people, though, add very significantly to congestion on trains — after 30 years, still 6 carriages and no more — 9 would be better, but the late-19th century rail infrastructure will not support it.
