Categories: uncategorized
Date: 13 July 2005 15:17:00
Ok, so I may have been ranting on Monday about transport in this country, but last nights Week in week out programme was discussing this very issue (in the context of Wales). With many of our main roads choked with traffic, is the answer just to build more roads, or should we be looking for a more long term solutions. My answer would be yes; building new motorways doesn't create more room on them, just allows us to fill them with more cars- too many new roads have been built with this intention, but it hasn't worked yet!
The programme gave reports from France and other European countries where investment in public transport is aiming to attract people away from their cars to more environmentally friendly trams and trains. Attempts to do this here however seem to be falling short of the mark. A new train line was recently constructed in Cardiff to serve the airport, but finishes a mile short, forcing travellers to change to a shuttle bus. The park and ride scheme in Swansea aims to stop people driving as far as the city centre, but only has one car park located to one side of the city, so many people are now driving further than before to avoid the increased parking charges in the city.
If the cost of an extension to the M4 (which was discussed in the programme) was put into improving public transport instead of tearing up protected conservation areas then maybe some progress would be made. A bit of common sense would work wonders- planning timetables so it is possible to make connections between buses/trains, planning routes so that to get to one place you don't have to go 15 miles in the opposite direction first (and then wait half an hour for a bus back!). Simply having bus and train stations near to each other so that changing doesn't require crossing the city in 2 mins, and coordinating timetables so that when you arrive in the evening by train you can still get a bus home (rather than a taxi). It's the little thing that matter!
Is it going to happen? Probably not. In the end the government will go with the popular vote, which seems to be the more roads the better. Ah well, we can but hope :)