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#CarDependency

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Had not had something like this happen in a while.

Riding my bike back home, a car passes me and some angry dude yells something. Of course he's caught up in traffic a little bit further ahead so I approach and say "what's your problem?"
-you shouldn't be on the road!
"so where should I be?"
He insists (wrongly) I shouldn't be on the road, gets off the car approaches me and threatens to punch me.
I'm not afraid and I dare him to do it, see how it works out for him. Plenty of witnesses and cameras on my bike, plus a very embarrassed woman still in the car with him.
He returns to his car, sits there and sulks.
I take my phone out, snap a picture of his car, smile and wave goodbye.
He's still sitting in traffic, probably.

Violently ignorant.
This is your brain on Cars.

Site visits at a retail park in Blanchardstown and an industrial estate in Neilstown mightn't sound like the makings of a pleasant morning out of the office, but today was a perfect day for the bike and I was able to take in both site visits and enjoy a cycle through the Phoenix Park and along the Grand Canal, as well as a short stop for lunch in Chapelizod.

Where is the walking and cycling infrastructure ?
Let's redirect funding from roads to walking and cycling infrastructure.

"Australia spends $714 per person on roads every year – but just 90 cents goes to walking, wheeling and cycling. Unfortunately, that’s how much the Australian government has invested per person annually on walking, wheeling and cycling over the past 20 years."

"As a result of this over-investment in car road-building, Australia has the smallest number of walking trips of 15 comparable countries across Western Europe and North America. Many Australians are dependent on cars because they have no other choice in terms of transport options."

"Road use is inherently dangerous – in Australia last year, more than 1,300 people died on our roads, which is more than 25 people a week."

"The typical Australian household spends 17% of its income on transport – with car ownership making up 92.5% of that figure, compared to 7.5% on public transport."

"A major source of all emissions in Australia are from driving."

"Redirecting funding from the current road budget makes the most sense, because getting more people walking, wheeling and cycling eases pressure on the transport system (think of school holiday traffic). "

"When it comes to transport, the saying goes “we get what we build” – so if we build more roads, we get more people driving. If we build paths, we get more people walking and cycling short journeys and our roads are less congested."
>>
theconversation.com/australia-

The Australian and NSW governments are funding the $2,200,000,000 ($2.2 billion), 14-kilometre Coffs Harbour bypass project. Cars will save 12 minutes. Imagine the walking and cycling infrastructure...
pacifichighway.nsw.gov.au/site

The ConversationAustralia spends $714 per person on roads every year – but just 90 cents goes to walking, wheeling and cyclingWalking and cycling get 90c per person each year from the Australian government. What if that figure rose to $5, $10 or $15?

Interesting point here about the dominant #urbandesign suburban land use style here in smoky #NorthAmerica : single exit SUV-dependent designs introduce a single point of failure in an emergency. The recommended emergency evacuation strategy here was for everyone to rush onto the streets at the same time, shutting down the streets until fire crews could come to bulldoze all of the abandoned vehicles. #disaster #cardependency #waroncars #evacuation firerescue1.com/wildfire-and-w

FireRescue1 · FD dozer pushes through abandoned cars as thousands flee from L.A. wildfireThe Los Angeles Fire Department took the rare step of calling in off-duty firefighters to fight the fast-moving Palisades Fire

Tangled up in oil in Petrotopia

Imagine life on an Island that has to import 91% of fuel from overseas.
And the entire matrix of the place has been set up for oil dependency a century ago.

Without a car there is no mobility (in Petrotopia)
Without a car one can't get stuff (made /transported by fossil fuels)
Without a car one can't get to work or other places
Without a car one can't drop off the kids
Without a car one can't empty the dogs
Without a car one can't go for a walk
Without a car /mower one can't do the endless lawns
Without a car/ boat/ plane one can't re-create or have a holiday

Australia is reliant on imports for around 91% of fuel consumption.
australiainstitute.org.au/post

Bondre, N. (2023). Petromobility and Energy Coloniality in Puerto Rico: Reading Luis Rafael Sánchez’s La Guaracha Del Macho Camacho. Green Letters, 27(2), 219–238. doi.org/10.1080/14688417.2023.
#energy #FossilFuels #cars #oil #petroleum #fuel #mobility modernity #dependency #EnergyDependency #Australia #islands #infrastructure #automobility #roads #malls #highways #Petrotopia #PetroMelancholia #CarDependency #MobilityDesign #ClimateBreakdown #transformation #societies

The Australia Institute · Australia 91% reliant on foreign oil: Research ReportA new research report by The Australia Institute has revealed the country has only increased its reliance on imported transport fuels since the federal

How extreme #cardependency is driving Americans to unhappiness
A car is often essential in the US but while owning a vehicle is better than not for life satisfaction, a study has found, having to drive too much sends #happiness plummeting theguardian.com/us-news/2024/d

A study of 11,000 #twins shows how to make America #walkable again #health
New #research shows what happens when #cities add sidewalks and take other #pedestrian-friendly steps grist.org/cities/study-twins-m

The Guardian · How extreme car dependency is driving Americans to unhappinessBy Oliver Milman

On the edge
stuck in commute

"Dropping new suburbs on to the edges of cities is a “trap” that comes at a cost.Quick and cheap urban sprawl is no sign of a livable, efficient city. The ripple effects are far-reaching and intertwined, from environmental and health impacts to dependence on cars, lost family time, detachment from friends and entertainment and isolation because of poor public infrastructure."

"Commute, shower, sleep, eat and commute again..
Commute, shower, sleep, eat and commute again."
>>
theguardian.com/australia-news
#sprawl #SoilSealing #housing #insecurity #injustice #CarDependency #commuting #suburbia #MobilityDesign #cars #roads #traffic #soil #ImperviousSurfaces #QualityofLife

Swiss voters reject motorway expansion plans.

Opponents of the plan cited "arguments about the environmental impact of the project and the fear that bigger roads would merely spawn more traffic. They now want the funds to be spent on public transport, active mobility, and renovating existing motorways."

Well done @PatrickRerat and others who campaigned hard for this result!

#CarDependency #SustainableTransport

swissinfo.ch/eng/swiss-politic

www.swissinfo.ch · Swiss reject plans for bigger motorways and extra rights for landlordsBy Domhnall O'Sullivan, Simon Bradley