Good day my good friend.

This is a reason I never thought I would give for a short introduction. I usually write this newsletter from the bottom up, so this is the last thing I usually write. But before doing it this time, while playing with my pet West Highland Terrier he smashed into the back of my hand, that is now in a lot of pain! Life, eh?

If you have any suggestions for interesting news items or bits of research to include in this newsletter, you can email me.

James

Long Roads to Ruin

Unless you have been hiding in a cave for the last 30 years, you probably know that deforestation in the rainforests of the world is a bad thing. And its still happening. And whilst roads may be important in connecting towns and cities in the rainforest, they can also have an unwelcome side-effect. Making it easier for companies to come in and illegally deforest even more than the official rates. But how bad is the problem?

A new study aims to shed some light on just this by studying the relationship between the extent of official and unofficial roads and deforestation in indigenous lands in the Amazon. There is no shock in finding out that for every kilometre of additional road, deforestation was found to have increased. The work also showed evidence of active fires and illegal mining. This poses a conundrum. Roads are excellent ways of improving accessibility of services and economic prospects. But should this be at any cost?

The Future of Cash and Parking

Michael Gove, the subject of one of the funniest political cartoons I have ever seen, has written to local councils in the UK expressing concern about the lack of options for paying for parking using cash. Far too much is being made about clashes between the Department for Transport and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Seriously, you should see them argue about planning guidance. But, does Mr Gove have a point?

It depends what you mean, really. We know that contactless and other cashless payment technologies are far more popular than ever, and its not all industry push. Cashless societies more generally have exclusionary risks, particularly among the ‘unbanked.’ But the evidence of impact is sparse, and its non-existent for parking. What I would say is that its worthwhile treading with caution and not ruling out cash completely (as Mr Gove says, its still legal tender), but keep an eye out for future research.

Random things

These links are meant to make you think about the things that affect our world in transport, and not just think about transport itself. I hope that you enjoy them.

• The Unpredictable Abilities Emerging From Large AI Models (Quanta Magazine)

• When the Big One Hits Portland, Cargo Bikers Will Save You (Backchannel)

• The future of scientific societies (Science)

• Honey, I sold the kids (aeon)

• Inside the battle over who gets to build the grid of the future (Minnesota Reformer)

Something interesting

If your idea of relaxing is watching cyclists riding by, this video will be right up your alley.

If you do nothing else today, then do this

Read this excellent article on accelerating adoption of electric vehicles in Nairobi. Ignore the talk of frameworks and the Brookings Institute selling itself, the information on the policy initiatives in Kenya is the interesting stuff.