“Car owners are arseholes” is not transport policy
blog.bloonface.com
blog.bloonface.com
L'homme qui a nourri le poulet tous les jours de sa vie finit par lui tordre le cou, montrant par là qu'il eût été bien utile au dit poulet d'avoir une vision plus subtile de l'uniformité de la nature.
I disagree, it read more like a stream of thought on why public transport and walking sucks, followed up with why car driving is great, a short aside on how bicycle riding isn't even an option because it's dangerous, finished up by telling the readers "please do not @ me on this or any other point in this article"
I strongly agree with his conclusion about funding transit as loss-leaders. But take serious issue with the line "We also should retrofit proper separated cycle lanes into existing streets wherever this can be accommodated alongside existing traffic" - If you're couching such a goal as "we can't affect current vehicle traffic", you're not very serious about getting a functional bike network. Bike routes will only ever be as safe as their most dangerous leg.
> I don't use a car, but don't think that all car owners are arseholes, maybe 5% are?
Agree with you here, 5% of all road users (whether they be drivers, cyclists, or pedestrians) will be jerks, and unfortunately they are the ones who tend to be the most memorable - but 95% of people are just trying to get from A to B safely and efficiently.
... it read more like a stream of thought ...
I had to rent a car 4 times this week, first to move some large items to the recycling station, second to head to animal ER with my cat, third to go to an examination site out on the country side and last to see the vet for a followup.
I've decided to buy one, it'll be expensive but make life easier and most importantly I can get faster help for my pet.
Listen, when I commuted every day in the Bay Area by motorcycle, you know what I most remember? Cars moving to the left of lane 1 to make it easy for me to split. When I'm driving? People switching lanes to clear the lane next to an exit-only lane so that others can merge in.
The world is full of good people and other people, and anyone who does this kind of incorrect attribution is obviously making unintelligent statements. The slicing goes a different way: all those guys who would make an allowance for me + me + others like me form Team A; and all those who try to cut off others or be dicks form Team B. And Team A members drive all sorts of vehicles.
One last thing, though. TfL does spray around buckets of cash, but has >1 farebox recovery ratio. So it's expensive, but it pays for itself. And it's a very efficient system, with daily/weekly/monthly maximums and entirely contactless. It's a wonderful system.
I will admit that bus services outside London can be absolute shite, though.