Good day my good friend.
Many of my British followers will no doubt have watched THAT episode of BBC Panorama by now. More on that below, but I always find it interesting how the likes of the BBC take a more “people” centred approach to the issue. One of the great skills of journalism is not to just report on the facts, but to tell a story with them to make them relevant and interesting. Sadly, that’s a skill in increasingly short supply.
If you have any suggestions for interesting news items or bits of research to include in this newsletter, you can email me.
James
LTNs again
This article on the BBC, a cover story for last night’s Panorama programme (for non-Brits, Panorama is a news magazine programme that has aired since the 1950s), focussed on the most abused bollard in the world on Howard Street in Oxford. The focus of every conspiracy on LTNs has been brought to bear on this bollard. Everything wrong about this whole debate and the insane reactions it brings forward has been playing out in East Oxford.
We know what the evidence says. That, in traffic terms, they are generally beneficial. But the impacts vary by scheme. But so what? Do we just leave it at that, and think that issues on the merits of schemes should be played out by others? Let others take the hit (sometimes literally)? Or do we actually stand up for the people who are standing up for what we know is right? You know, I’m getting rather sick of taking a back seat on this sort of thing. Supporters protecting the LTNs – all power to you. You are doing the right thing.
Pavements – sustainable in function, make it sustainable by design
Pavements (or sidewalks for my friends on the other side of the Atlantic) are great. They are where people walk, and its where all of the interesting activity in a street takes place. They can also be indicators of wider issues, and when SUDS are done well they can look absolutely stunning. But lets be honest here, they are not exactly sustainable. They are made of similar concrete slabs and asphalt as the roads that are not as popular. The thing is, concrete and asphalt is an amazing building material. So what to do?
Simple, really. Reclaim the asphalt and recycle it. Much work has been done over the years to make surfacing from recycled materials, but a new study shows that using reclaimed asphalt significantly improves the environmental performance of the surface across a number of indicators. Notably reducing emissions during production. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle has taken a bit of a hit recently, as people question the veracity of recycling claims. But, the impact of doing all 3 is well beyond your feel good factor or cynicism. So we should be doing this sort of thing.
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.
A global aircraft-based wastewater genomic surveillance network for early warning of future pandemics (The Lancet)
The Disinformation Complex: An Anatomy (Scheerpost)
Urban water crises driven by elites’ unsustainable consumption (Nature)
‘Overemployed’ Hustlers Exploit ChatGPT To Take On Even More Full-Time Jobs (Vice)
Something interesting
Most of you will have heard of the Berlin Wall. One of the interesting questions it raised is a practical one: how do you split a city? This video explores how this was done in Berlin.
If you do nothing else today, then do this
Find out about this excellent project in Manchester that is exploring whether it is possible to make streets safer for women and girls using art. I have no idea if it will be successful or not, but I love this sort of project.
Mobility Matters 