🤦♂️ Friendly Fire - MM#623
Good day my good friend.
Many of you will have noticed that my newsletter has focused less on best practice on schemes and initiatives to to improve transport in a sustainable and just way. There is a reason for this, and it relates a lot to the topics that will be discussed in the coming weeks at COP.
The problem is not of evidence, nor is it of practice. Even the technology to achieve what we want to achieve is here. What is lacking is the will and the bravery to do what is necessary to change our world.
This is the key barrier that needs tackling. Process talk and talk of politics and engagement is frustrating, boring, and hardly plays to the strengths of engineers. But these are conversations that need to be had, as it moves sustainable travel from something that is hard to do, to something that is easy. To me, that is when we will know when we are in a just and sustainable world - when the just and sustainable thing is the easy option.
Today’s is slightly truncated due to a mix of overrunning meetings and a busy schedule. But hopefully this is a reminder that we have the ideas and the evidence. The end game is to make delivering sustainable travel easy.
If you like this newsletter, please share it with someone else who you think will love it. The main way my audience grows is through your recommendations. I will love you forever if you do. ☺️
James
✅ Don’t let perfect be the enemy of the good
Yesterday, I took a call from a very good friend about an issue that she was facing in her industry which I think is common in many areas, and make life harder for a lot of us. This is of the person shooting friendly fire. They turn up to meetings or forums, stand up and say “I agree with what you are trying to achieve, but…” before listing off how this solution does not tackle the issue they are interested in, or how we should scrap the plan that you have developed because while it is a good thing, it does not achieve best practice in all aspects of its delivery.
I will very unfairly generalise here. This is a favoured tactic of many seasoned campaigners and sometimes academics, who having done a lot of reading and research (and not much delivering) now have the perfect solution to the problem. All it needs is for there to be unimaginable resources dedicated to it, for it to fit into a theoretical framework perfectly, and for the public to be ignored.
This is not to say that constructive challenge should be ignored, and that there should not be open dialogue about improvements that should be made. What I am saying is that it is useful to remember some words that I often quote, and make no bones about doing so again.
Ask for what you want, settle for what you need.
These are very often not the same thing. But if you approach, say, the design of a new cycle track thinking that if its not Dutch standard then its pointless when it objectively provides a safer, convenient route that will be well used, you will not be delivering what is needed.
A lot of time is dedicated to the research and recommendation of perfect policy packages, resulting in lots of reports and recommendations. I should know, I have written a few of them. What we need right now is not perfect. To decarbonise and make our transport system more just, we need good enough.
We need to cycle networks that provide segregated routes but may have a small conflict with users of a bus stop in one area. We need to roll out electric vehicles. We need pedestrianised areas that allow motor vehicles to use them at night. We need that high speed line that may not quite serve all communities that it could.
Delivering the future is hard. And what makes it harder is people on your own side saying your solution isn’t good enough because its not perfect, or it doesn’t solve every problem. We have no time to waste in making the changes necessary. The last thing that is needed is to fight among ourselves over perfection. Good enough is just fine.
What you can do: When reviewing schemes, consider the scheme objectives. Make a list of what you want the scheme to achieve. And then make a list of what is needed to achieve its goals, and the goals of a more sustainable and just future. Use those as a basis to engage the local authority on it in the future.
🎓 From academia
The clever clogs at our universities have published the following excellent research. Where you are unable to access the research, email the author - they may give you a copy of the research paper for free.
Transit-induced gentrification and displacement: future directions in research and practice
TL:DR - As research in this area has become more detailed, policy recommendations have become harder to articulate.
Study on Induced Passenger Flow Forecast for Intercity High-Speed Rail
TL:DR - The induced demand from high speed lines is high, especially in China.
Do women perceive pedestrian path attractiveness differently from men?
TL:DR - Yes they do. Women care a lot more about safety and security, men about directness and continuity.
Revealing social dimensions of urban mobility with big data: A timely dialogue
TL:DR - Do we want to use big data to make transport more efficient or more equitable?
✊ Awesome people doing awesome things
A huge shout out to Jo Ward, Matthew Ward, Rory Davis, Jill Bennett, Elaine Orme, and many, many others at Kirklees Council. The upgrade of the Penistone Line was just awarded £48 million in government funding. I did do some work on the case for this in the very early stage, and it is a wonderful line with a very active and engaged community rail partnership. So this upgrade is wonderful news.
📼 On the (You)Tube
Anyone who has ever been on the London Underground knows that each line makes its own ‘noise.’ But the Jubilee Line one is unique. In this video, Jago Hazard explores why.
🖼️ Graphic Design
When will we reach ‘peak people’ (and potentially peak travel)? Within our lifetimes, according to the United Nations.
📚 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.
This Is The Wildest Coup In Silicon Valley History (Business Insider)
The Ghosts Haunting China’s Cities (The Guardian)
The patterns of reality (aeon)
Upzoning New Zealand (Works In Progress)
Green shipping picks up speed (Knowable)
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