trailgumby wrote: ↑Tue Jun 20, 2023 2:27 pm
Don't mean to be rude, but that attitude guarantees it. You're conceding defeat before entering the fight.
Will it be hard? Hell, yes. Are the murdoch and stokes fossil fuel friendly media empires against it? Definitely. But is defeat inevitable? Absolutely not. Will there be setbacks? Of course. Can the truth win? That's inevitable ... but it depends on us, and possibly those who come after us.
In our favour is simple geography. 40% of our urban land area is already taken up with roads. We have a housing affordabilty crisis driven by lack of supply in the areas where people actually want to live, so giving an even greater share to roads just won't fly. The simple truth is we can't fit more cars on the roads. We have to use what we have more efficiently.
That means shifting mode share to micro-mobility. Bikes. e-bikes. Scooters.
We're seeing signs already with TfNSW's road user space allocation policy putting private motor vehicles last.
Like water on stone, the steady drip of truth will wear down the motor centric mindset if only we stay the course.
There are some good points there, and it is different elsewhere I believe. Holland, Denmark, France and other places.
We have a long way to go unfortunately.
When I do visit Melbourne there are some changes, more painted paths and more people on bikes. Still a very small percentage of travel mode it appears.
Where I am in Bendigo, I think it is actually getting less safe.
Covid and house prices are pushing/drawing people out of the city and increasing the population outside of the major centres.
Driver distraction is getting worse as has traffic density.
I have bailed to an extent. Very choosy where and when I ride. More gravel and places away from cars. It is far more pleasant and there is less chance of being run down.
I CBFed fighting the fight as an advocate
. I don't see the chance of positive change very likely but it is good there are those who do. The more advocating the higher the chance of positive change.
I see the best chance of getting people out of cars will be electric mobility devices.
If that accelerates it will bring issues with idiots on them, an idiot on an electric scooter is less likely to kill me than one in a car.