Outside the Box in Europe

Just returned from a carfree trip around Northern Italy, Croatia and Slovenia, staying in apartments and travelling around on public transport - trams, trains, buses, ferries and catamarans. Although it wasn’t planned as such (with the obvious exception of Venice), one thing really stood out: from small islands in the Adriatic to big Italian cities like Milan, the rest of Europe is serious about re-balancing public space for the benefit of people who aren’t in cars. The rest of Europe seems to really get it - cars don’t get to go wherever their drivers want to, at the expense of all the others users of public space.
Some of the most striking things:
- Large areas of many cities are now pedestrian zones. Even the car-mad Italians have got rid of the cars in the centre of Milan, around the Duomo


- Cyclists and pedestrians seem able to co-exist peacefully in the carfree zones
- Increasing numbers of cities have bike rent schemes modelled on the Paris Velib: we saw them in Bologna, Milano and Ljubljana
- More cities are  getting car club/car rental schemes
- Some cities provide free transport services to help people get around in the areas where cars aren’t allowed
And then, we come  back to Brighton and Hove and find……a move to reduce the amount of time when George Street, Hove’s main shopping street, is given over to pedestrians. Welcome back to the Stone Age…

Outside The Box in Ireland: Dublin On Foot

Back in the day, when the Celtic Tiger was roaring, and before dot.com turned into dot bomb, I worked on a project for the Irish government designed to bring more international bandwidth to the Republic. Several visits to Dublin were involved, which wasn’t a hardship, but on every trip, as the economy boomed, the traffic got worse. In the light of the economic meltdown, Europe may seem a mixed blessing, but EU money has flowed into the Republic, and Dublin has benefited from a makeover. Getting in from the airport, once a traffic-clogged 45 minute crawl, is now a 20 minute breeze via a brand new road tunnel. The traffic in O'Connoll Street has been tamed with wide, pedestrian-friendly pavements. A fine tram system (the LUAS) has appeared. There's a 30km/h zone around Trinity College. Pedestrian boardwalks have sprung up along the Liffey. There are bike lanes, and a bike hire scheme. Traffic still races along the Quays, and pedestrian waits at signalled crossings can seem interminable.  But Dublin, as poetic as ever, is now a better place for those of us who choose to be outside the box.

Bike Hire in Brighton (and Hove)?

Today’s big news, front page in the Argus, is that Brighton is in line for a bike hire scheme. Or is it? Now I’m totally in favour of a bike hire scheme, having seen it working well in places as far flung as London and Montreal. But reading the Argus, the cynic in me notes that this story provides some useful pro-bike spin whilst the council is being panned over the planned removal of the Grand Avenue cycle lanes. Taking the story in detail, the plans all look very provisional, as my italics on the following quotes indicate: “Boris bikes” could soon be rolled out in Brighton and Hove….If introduced….could be introduced in “months rather than years”…. “Pick up points” could be set up outside key locations….” And so on. The story in the print version of the Argus mentions that sponsors are needed, and concedes that none have been lined up. I hope I’m wrong about this – after all, I did scoop the Argus by revealing back in January that a bike hire scheme was being considered. (where I also let slip that Brighton and Hove Bus Company’s version of the Oyster travel card will be The Key, probably launching in the summer and that Brighton might be getting some hybrid buses) Of course, if Boris bikes are anything to go by, one of the biggest questions is going to be who gets to be the political face of Brighton (and Hove) rent-a-bike? Best not to hold your breath whilst our leaders start forming an orderly queue.