Fuck Cars

ajsadauskas , 24 days ago

So despite climate change, Australia's federal government has just committed an extra $3.25 billion into building a toll road and a 20-lane freeway widening.

For those who wonder why Aussies think toll roads are a scam (https://aus.social/@LesserAbe@lemmy.world/112405373613706682), here's a great example of why.

"Pouring an extra $3.25 billion worth of federal funds into Melbourne’s North East Link is a good use of taxpayer money, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has insisted, despite the project’s cost doubling just a few months ago.

...

"The North East Link – which includes 6½ kilometres of tunnels – will stretch from Bulleen to Greensborough. It will widen the Eastern Freeway by up to 20 lanes.

"Allan revealed in December that the 10-kilometre toll road had more than doubled in cost since it was first announced.

"The toll road was initially budgeted at $10 billion and reassessed in 2019 at $15 billion. But the government revealed last year that the updated cost estimate was $26 billion."

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/federal-funding-to-boost-victorian-road-link-by-3-25-billion-20240509-p5ii7b.html

@fuck_cars #Urbanism #Auspol #Vicpol #roads #UrbanPlanning #transport #cities #Melbourne #Naarm #Victoria #Australia

ajsadauskas , 25 days ago

The toll road scam: A government-made monopoly you pay for.

Here's a funny-because-it's-true take on Transurban and the poor tax it imposes, from Punter's Politics:

https://youtu.be/FlKBakPAtiw?si=G39_0GcJzSB0SSA8

#cars #roads #fuckcars @fuck_cars #tolls #tollroads #memes #funny #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #auspol #vicpol #nswpol

ajsadauskas , 28 days ago (edited 28 days ago)

So the RTA's own modelling showed the Rozelle Interchange would be a traffic disaster—but generating more toll road trips for Transurban was more important.

"The [NSW Roads and Traffic Authority] finalised the first business case for the WestConnex tunnel project in June 2013, with the help of road designers from around the world.

"[Paul Forward, a former CEO of the RTA] said the initial concept did not include the Rozelle Interchange.

...

"In 2014, an expert review group was formed to assess these plans.

"Mr Forward said it was at this point that TfNSW bureaucrats began to question the connectivity provided by the design.

"The RTA's former director of traffic Chris Ford told the inquiry that 15 alternative designs were modelled.

"Mr Ford said the modelling found that another motorway leading to the Anzac Bridge would cause congestion.

"'The issues that we see today were very clearly established in the modelling in 2014,' he said.

"In November 2015, after Mr Forward and Mr Ford were dismissed, TfNSW updated the WestConnex business case to include the tunnel to the Anzac Bridge, despite the congestion concerns raised by the modelling.

"In 2016, Transport for NSW updated the business case a second time ... creating a tunnel linking the Iron Cove Bridge to the Anzac Bridge."

...

"In 2018, the NSW government sold its 51 per cent stake in the Sydney Motorway Corporation, the body responsible for operating WestConnex, to Transurban for $9 billion.

"Mr Forward said the final design would generate a larger number of toll trips than previous options."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-05-03/sydney-western-harbour-tunnel-warringah-freeway-traffic-disaster/103801818

@fuck_cars #roads #cars #urbanism #nswpol #sydney #WestConnex #UrbanPlanning #transport

ajsadauskas , 29 days ago

"It's going to be a bloody disaster": Tell me again about how the second road tunnel under Sydney Harbour won't make congestion worse?

"Civil engineer Les Wielinga, a former CEO at the now-defunct Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA), made the fiery comments at a NSW parliamentary inquiry into the bungled Rozelle Interchange.

"The Western Harbour Tunnel, which is under construction, will allow drivers travelling between the inner west and the North Shore to bypass the CBD.

"Entries and exits to the tunnel will lie at the Ernest Street interchange in Cammeray and near the Falcon Street interchange at North Sydney.

"'It's going to be a bloody disaster,' Mr Wielinga told the upper house committee on Friday.

"Paul Forward, another former CEO of the RTA, told the inquiry he was concerned about the project's design.

"'You've now got three motorways coming out into this short area, and whilst I would recognise there are some exit points, some off-ramps, those motorways are now all going into the Lane Cove Tunnel,' he said.

"'A large number of lanes are going into two lanes at the Lane Cove Tunnel. Sounds familiar?'"

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-05-03/sydney-western-harbour-tunnel-warringah-freeway-traffic-disaster/103801818

@fuck_cars #sydney #roads #planning #UrbanPlanning

mapto , 1 month ago

A former manager described Musk as a “pigeon CEO”: “He comes in, shits all over us, and then leaves.”

https://electrek.co/2024/04/22/elon-musk-pigeon-ceo-former-tesla-manager/

@fuck_cars

ajsadauskas , 1 month ago

How to remove a freeway...

The decision to build freeways instead of rail in the post-war years, along with the low-rise single-zoned suburbs it promoted, has been an absolute planning disaster.

But the mistake can be fixed, and freeways can be removed.

City Beautiful's Dave Amos @citybeautiful has an interesting look at some of America's endangered freeways, and how communities can get them removed:

https://youtu.be/XOpjDSUmPtU?si=F7SHc-uDLJkKd9Gu

@fuck_cars #freeways #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #cars

ajsadauskas , 2 months ago (edited 2 months ago)

The saga of Waverley Park — Melbourne's car-dependent suburban AFL stadium with a planned seated capacity of over 150,000 (not a typo!)

A really good run down by @philip on the plans by the AFL (and its predecessor, the VFL) to build the world's largest stadium in outer-suburban Melbourne.

Unfortunately, a planned railway line past the stadium to Rowville was never built. That meant a massive 25,000-spot car park as the only real means to get there.

While most of it has been demolished and redeveloped for housing, the oval itself still used by Hawthorn Football Club as a training and administration centre.

https://youtu.be/LvvLwiRCx4s?si=x2QvxepgPtBtJZfx

@fuck_cars #AFL #Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #cars #stadium #stadia #Melbourne #sport #footy #football #stadiums #history #Victoria #VicPol #Australia #planning #Hawthorn #AusPol #CarBrain

ajsadauskas , 2 months ago

So WestConnex was totally going to solve traffic in Sydney by adding more lanes for cars. Just a few teething problems on the Rozelle Interchange and it'll all clear up, they said.

I wonder how it's going?

"Gladesville and Drummoyne locals say gridlock is worsening in their suburbs following changes to improve traffic flow through the notorious Rozelle Interchange, with drivers using local streets as “rat runs” to dodge congestion."

Oh dear...

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/rozelle-interchange-fix-has-created-rat-runs-in-the-suburbs-20240319-p5fdim.html

#roads #cars #fuckcars #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #traffic #cities #congestion #car @fuck_cars

ajsadauskas , 2 months ago

Sydney has opened up consultation on a strategy to reduce car traffic and make the city more walkable

"Driving in central Sydney will become harder under a plan to make the city more comfortable for pedestrians.

"The City of Sydney wants to narrow roads for wider footpaths and push for lower speed limits to discourage drivers from the CBD and transform Sydney into a walkable city.

"The council will also install more pedestrian crossings and prioritise people over cars... five times more pedestrians than motorists on the average street, yet just 40 per cent of road space is allocated to footpaths."

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/greener-safer-calmer-the-plan-to-discourage-drivers-from-central-sydney-20240312-p5fbr7.html

Some key points of the strategy are:

We will ensure that there is sufficient space for people to walk.

We will improve connectivity for people walking by ensuring there are frequent street crossings that give people priority and that align with people’s walking routes.

We will ensure that footpaths and crossings are accessible so that everyone can use them.

We will plan our city based on 10-minute neighbourhoods so that people are able to meet their daily needs easily by walking.

We will make it safer for people to walk by reducing vehicle speeds.

We will reduce traffic volumes on surface streets and manage through-traffic in residential neighbourhood streets to improve both safety and experience for people walking.

We will work to make all people feel safer while walking around our city.

We will work to improve compliance with road rules, especially the lesser-known rules that benefit people walking.

We will make our streets and public spaces comfortable and inviting by ensuring that they
are green and cool.

We will make sure that there are frequent opportunities for people to stop and rest, use the toilet or have a drink of water.

We will make our city more pleasant to walk in by reducing noise and air pollution from
traffic.

We will make all streets interesting to walk along by ensuring that built form has active, permeable frontages that invite engagement and curiosity.

We will use design, activations and installations to create neighbourhood-based community and encourage people to interact with their streets.

Full details here: https://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/policy-planning-changes/your-feedback-walking-strategy-action-plan#strategy

Unfortunately, the car-brained leader of the local business lobby isn't on board:

"Business Sydney executive director Paul Nicolaou welcomed efforts to make the city pedestrian-friendly... But Nicolaou said it was difficult to see how making Sydney a predominantly walking city would benefit businesses such as retailers."

(Worth repeating that 80% of people on an average city street are pedestrians, so it already is a predominantly walking city.)

Anyway, if you think the plan's a good idea, make sure you let the Sydney City Council know by emailing sydneyyoursay@cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au

#urbanism #UrbanPlanning #Sydney @fuck_cars #walking #walk #walkability #nswpol #auspol #nsw #planning #cities #UrbanGreening #city #cities #australia

ajsadauskas , 2 months ago

Are microplastics from car tyres contributing to heart disease?

"Add one more likely culprit to the long list of known cardiovascular risk factors including red meat, butter, smoking and stress: microplastics.

"In a study released Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine, an international team of physicians and researchers showed that surgical patients who had a build-up of micro and nanoplastics in their arterial plaque had a 2.1 times greater risk of nonfatal heart attack, nonfatal stroke or death from any cause in the three years post surgery than those who did not."

https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2024-03-07/microplastics-may-be-risk-factor-for-cardiovascular-disease

The research is particularly noteworthy, given that one of the biggest sources of microplastic pollution is the synthetic rubber in car tyres: https://aus.social/@ajsadauskas/112015017609398126

So it's not just the sedentary lifestyles that car-dependent planning encourages that's causing health issues.

And it's not just exhaust fumes either.

There's also the health impacts of microplastics, including from car tyres.

Worth noting as well that internal documents from the big oil companies show that they knew since the 1970s that recycling wasn't going to solve the problem of plastic pollution. They promoted it anyway: https://aus.social/@ajsadauskas/112064312364853769

#tyres #tyre #car #microplastic #microplastics #pollution #environment @fuck_cars #fuckcars

LovesTha , 2 months ago

@fuck_cars Something I wish Australia would change is laws prohibiting any vehicles between a 200W ebike and a full motorcycle. I'd get a lot of value from a 60kmph limited 1kW ebike. But currently to sell such a thing it would have to comply with all motorcycle requirements, and things like ABS on both wheels is really not required for such a device.a
#AusPol #eBikes

ajsadauskas , 2 months ago

Some good news for anyone who loves RMTransit's public transport explainer videos, but doesn't like Google and YouTube.

Looks like @RM_Transit now has an account on PeerTube here, which you can follow from Mastodon: @reece

(If you're the first to follow the account from your instance it will initially appear empty. Videos will start appearing in your feed after you follow.)

#RMTransit #Urbanism @fuck_cars #UrbanPlanning #PublicTransport #MassTransit #Train #Trains #Tram #Trams

ajsadauskas , 2 months ago

From gadgetbahn to museum piece...

You know that self-driving bus the NSW government was trialling back in 2014?

Well, you can now see it in the Sydney Bus Museum.

@fuck_cars #bus #urbanism #UrbanPlanning

Inside the self-driving bus.
A sign describing this futuristic vehicle.

ajsadauskas , 3 months ago (edited 3 months ago)

Concerned about microplastics? Research shows one of the biggest sources is car tyres

A lot of the emphasis on reducing microplastics has focussed on things like plastic bags, clothing, and food packaging.

But there's a growing body of research that shows one of the biggest culprits by far is car tyres.

It's increasingly clear that we simply cannot solve the issue of microplastics in the environment while still using tyres — even with electric-powered cars.

"Tyre wear stands out as a major source of microplastic pollution. Globally, each person is responsible for around 1kg of microplastic pollution from tyre wear released into the environment on average each year – with even higher rates observed in developed nations.

"It is estimated that between 8% and 40% of these particles find their way into surface waters such as the sea, rivers and lakes through runoff from road surfaces, wastewater discharge or even through airborne transport.

"However, tyre wear microplastics have been largely overlooked as a microplastic pollutant. Their dark colour makes them difficult to detect, so these particles can’t be identified using the traditional spectroscopy methods used to identify other more colourful plastic polymers."

https://theconversation.com/check-your-tyres-you-might-be-adding-unnecessary-microplastics-to-the-environment-205612#:~:text=Tyre%20wear%20stands%20out%20as,rates%20observed%20in%20developed%20nations.

"Microplastic pollution has polluted the entire planet, from Arctic snow and Alpine soils to the deepest oceans. The particles can harbour toxic chemicals and harmful microbes and are known to harm some marine creatures. People are also known to consume them via food and water, and to breathe them, But the impact on human health is not yet known.

"“Roads are a very significant source of microplastics to remote areas, including the oceans,” said Andreas Stohl, from the Norwegian Institute for Air Research, who led the research. He said an average tyre loses 4kg during its lifetime. “It’s such a huge amount of plastic compared to, say, clothes,” whose fibres are commonly found in rivers, Stohl said. “You will not lose kilograms of plastic from your clothing.”"

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jul/14/car-tyres-are-major-source-of-ocean-microplastics-study

"Microplastics are of increasing concern in the environment [1, 2]. Tire wear is estimated to be one of the largest sources of microplastics entering the aquatic environment [3,4,5,6,7]. The mechanical abrasion of car tires by the road surface forms tire wear particles (TWP) [8] and/or tire and road wear particles (TRWP), consisting of a complex mixture of rubber, with both embedded asphalt and minerals from the pavement [9]."

https://microplastics.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s43591-021-00008-w

#car #cars #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #FuckCars @fuck_cars #environment #microplastics #pollution #plastics

ajsadauskas , 3 months ago

If you care about the planet, please make sure you sit down before you start reading this post about ExxonMobil.

So.

The CEO of ExxonMobil just said this in an interview: "We’ve waited too long to open the aperture on the solution sets in terms of what we need, as a society, to start reducing emissions."

https://fortune.com/2024/02/27/exxon-ceo-darren-woods-interview-pay-the-price-for-net-zero/

Who's the most influential voice on climate change? Who's to blame for inaction on climate change?

According to the CEO of ExxonMobil, it's environmental activists.

No, really:

"Frankly, society, and the activist—the dominant voice in this discussion—has tried to exclude the industry that has the most capacity and the highest potential for helping with some of the technologies."

Oh, and the CEO of ExxonMobil also apparently thinks consumers are to blame for climate inaction:

"Today we have opportunities to make fuels with lower carbon, but people aren’t willing to spend the money to do that."

Gets better.

He thinks unnamed 'people who generate emissions' should pay for it. (Rather than, say, major transnational oil companies.)

"People who are generating the emissions need to be aware of [it] and pay the price. That’s ultimately how you solve the problem."

https://fortune.com/2024/02/27/exxon-ceo-darren-woods-interview-pay-the-price-for-net-zero/

Worth including a quick reminder here that Exxon-Mobil made a US$36 billion profit in 2023: https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/exxon-beats-estimates-ends-2023-with-36-billion-profit-2024-02-02/#:~:text=HOUSTON%2C%20Feb%202%20(Reuters),higher%20oil%20and%20gas%20production.

Not gross revenue.

Profit.

So, remind me again. Who knew about climate change before most of the public?

"Exxon was aware of climate change, as early as 1977, 11 years before it became a public issue... This knowledge did not prevent the company (now ExxonMobil and the world’s largest oil and gas company) from spending decades refusing to publicly acknowledge climate change and even promoting climate misinformation."

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/exxon-knew-about-climate-change-almost-40-years-ago/

And just who, exactly, stood in the way reducing emissions all these years?

"ExxonMobil executives privately sought to undermine climate science even after the oil and gas giant publicly acknowledged the link between fossil fuel emissions and climate change, according to previously unreported documents...

"The new revelations are based on previously unreported documents subpoenaed by New York’s attorney general as part of an investigation into the company announced in 2015. They add to a slew of documents that record a decades-long misinformation campaign waged by Exxon, which are cited in a growing number of state and municipal lawsuits against big oil."

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/sep/14/exxonmobil-documents-wall-street-journal-climate-science

#oil #BigOil @fuck_cars #Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #ClimateChange #environment #ExxonMobil #Exxon #business #economy #politics #capitalism #ClimateCrisis