letter from the mayor

[Trek420]

"... one city in the developing world has broken the vicious circle of transport growth, poverty, pollution and inequality and has turned transport policy upside down to benefit the poor and reward the pedestrian.

In Bogotá, Columbia, Enrique Penalosa, the mayor from 1998-2001, held a referendum and reallocated transport budgets to improve the quality of life for the poorest. The results were staggering. The city embarked on an intensive programme of building cycling and pedestrian-only routes, including a car-free route, 17km long, connecting some of the poorest parts of the city to facilities they need to access, including jobs. Parks were built on derelict land, canals cleaned up and car-free days implemented. In October 2000, the citizens of Bogotá voted in favour of excluding cars from the city in the morning and afternoon peaks from 2005.

Penalosa introduced a car number-plate system that required 40% of the cars to be off the roads during peak hours on two days a week, and this produced a reduction in pollution. More than 80 miles of main road are now closed for seven hours every Sunday and, each week, up to 2 million people come out to enjoy the clean air, the freedom and the safe environment. On one weekend in 2002, a car-free day was set up and 7 million people went to work without a car. In a subsequent poll, 82% supported the concept.

Bogotá's approach is based on creating an equal and vibrant city where no one need fear the oppression that pervades so many other countries' transport systems. Penalosa wanted a reliable and free-moving bus system that was affordable and used road space at ground level. An underground or metro, he reasoned, was simply too expensive for a poor country and, in any case, was supported only by rich people because it keeps intact as much road space as possible. Now the buses carry more than half a million people every day, are reliable and affordable, and give the poorest in Bogotá as much accessibility to jobs and facilities as the rich have. The bus system also covers its cost and makes a profit while every metro in the world swallows up huge subsidies, which are further losses from health, education and sanitation programmes.

Traditional transport policies do not work for the poor - whether in Columbia or Britain. Western countries can learn from experiences such as this and we should stop sending our transport consultants to developing countries. We need the radical approach pioneered in Columbia, with its emphasis on equality, democracy, openness and citizen participation - especially of women, older people, children and those who walk, cycle and travel on buses."

this is from http://www.bristolcyclingcampaign.or...mer/bogota.htm

[Python]

Nice one Mimi

[Python]

That is a very interesting post and link Trek. I live only 35 miles from Bristol. I can honestly see a point in the not too distant future where the bicycle will rule the towns and cities. Some towns and cities are already implenting expensive charges to drive through the city - London for example.

Perhaps one of the biggest problems, certainly in this country, is that many people commute over 100 miles to work - often on a daily basis. I think if there were more job opportunities locally that paid a decent wage instead of a pittance many people would ditch their cars in favour of either bicycles or public transport. Unfortunately, in this country public transport is unreliable, expensive and often dirty.

I used to love driving and I've driven as a profession too. Now I no longer enjoy driving simply because there are too many vehicles on the road and everyone is in too much of a hurry to get from A to B. I also think people work too many hours. Many people work from 8am till 9pm or later. By the time they finish work, they are too tired to even contemplate cycling. All they want to do is get home and put their feet up. I've been in that situation in the past. I only work part-time in an office now which does leave me enough time to commute by bike - which I much prefer.

The whole transport system needs to be completely overhauled.

Another thing I wonder about is with all the talk of global warming (whether you believe in it or not) why do the bicycle manufacturers not advertise their bikes and the obvious benefits of cycling to the rider and the environment on TV? The only advert I've seen on TV and that was a couple of days ago (I nearly fainted with shock ) was our big motor/cycle store, Halfords had an advert on TV advertising their bikes for sale. The advert was aimed at families - bikes for Mum, Dad and the kids. If Halfords can do that (and they sell bottom end bikes, often their own brand) why can't the big companies like Trek, Giant, Specialized etc.? The more people they get interested in cycling by advertising, the more people will buy a bike, even those who haven't thought about it before and their profits will soar (not to mention that those who buy a bike will find their bank balance will grow very quickly).

Regardless of global warming, something needs to be done to cut the amount of vehicles on our roads, otherwise within 10 years there won't be any space on the roads and they'll just become one giant car-park like the most famous car-park in the world - the M25 motorway (freeway).