[sustran] Re: Hans Monderman messages

[Todd Edelman, Green Idea Factory]

Hi,

"Shared Space" or shared space in cities and towns is a wonderful thing, 
a piece of the most rich, moist and totally delicious cake - if you will 
- but one which has a piece of glass inside of it. The glass is the 
private car (for now, and, eventually - I hope - all cars). I especially 
appreciate that Hans Monderman recognised that Shared Space was not a 
panacea, and - to put my opinion in - it is not just not a cure-all for 
road safety in cities, but for sustainability in general. We need to 
remove the glass from the cake.... but, after doing so, we may find that 
we don't need the cake, or the "Cake".

So I hope Shared Space will be used to help people find this glass, to 
show - perhaps - that it is not the traffic rules and behaviour which 
are the problem, but the automobile itself. I realise that this was/is 
not the goal of Shared Space, but that is what makes it work for me (and 
I think many others, who, for solid, rational and scientific reasons 
object to cars no matter how much they... share.)

- T

.britton wrote:
> Dear Terence, Ben and others.
>
> In fact what we call shared space is probably the most common arrangement
> taking in the world as a whole. Highly regulated traffic systems with strong
> separation of modes and types of traffic is mostly found in developed
> western countries, and other countries where western consultants and
> engineers have left their mark.
>
> How well shared space works depends on many things, but one factor that
> strikes me as important is speed of vehicles, and the differences in speed
> of different vehicles. For example where there is a big mix of cyclists and
> slow-moving motor vehicles, it works well. Where motor vehicles predominate
> and there are few pedestrians it is more difficult to get drivers to go
> slowly, and then the system breaks down.
>
> Another aspect is attitudes and behaviour of the population concerned. Hans
> Monderman recognised the difference in behaviour of a local village resident
> in a vehicle, and a driver from elsewhere (perhaps even from another
> country) passing through and being unaware of local driving norms. In busy
> streets in China one can spot the western foreigners because they try to
> dodge the vehicles when crossing the road, whereas the norm is to walk
> slowly but deliberately across the road, and let the drivers dodge you.
>
> I have many other thoughts on this, but they will have to await my next book
> (well, article anyway).
>
> Terence, I would like to hear more about Vietnam when we next meet.
>
> Best regards to all
>
> Tim Pharoah
>
>
> On 14/1/08 09:44, "Terence Bendixson" <t.bendixson at pobox.com> wrote:
>
> Dear Ben
>  
> Thanks for your report. I have been in Vietnam and had missed the news.
> Oddly enough I was thinking about Monderman and you when there. As I expect
> you know, traffic in places like Hanoi flows almost without benefit of
> traffic engineering and control - and  virtually never gets blocked. It is a
> tribute to human interaction, decentralisation and the smallness of most of
> the vehicles. It is not pretty but it works. Have you witnessed it?
>  
> Regards
>  
> Terence Bendixson
> Secretary 
> ITC
>  
>
>  
>
>  
>
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>   


-- 
--------------------------------------------

Todd Edelman
Director
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