[sustran] RE: alt-transp GNGM newsletter #2

[Eric Britton]

Michael Yates makes the excellent point:

>> The increasing evidence of the need to increase police enforcement and
support it with strong community support at the local level suggests that
the "engineering" view of traffic calming being essential is both out of
date and too expensive.<<

My comment after years of rather careful observation in a wide variety of
circumstances, however, is that drivers (me included) are not reasonable
people, and they will, ALWAYS, go as fast as the street architecture
permits.  This suggests to me that the ONLY policy that is going to work and
make the streets safe is via physical reconstruction and the limitation of
straight unencumbered shoots.

But we can also observe that with good community support and unrelenting
positive pressure on the politicians, administrators, media, and the "powers
that be", it is possible to reshape the local street network bit by painful
bit.  Takes a bunch of years, but the real challenge is that of getting the
ball rolling. What is more, there is a whole generation of traffic engineers
and planners who have been cranked out of the school system in the last
decade or so, who are often quite ready to help make this happen.

Or do I have this wrong?

Eric Britton

ecopl at n ___  technology, economy, society  ___
Le Frene, 8/10 rue Joseph Bara, F-75006 Paris, France
email at ecoplan.org   URL www.ecoplan.org
Tel: +331.4326.1323 Videoconference +331.4441.6340 (1-4)
24 hour fax/voicemail hotline: In Europe +331 5301 2896.
In North America +1 888 522 6419 (toll free)