When will the Government learn that new laws are almost never the solution. Enforcing the current ones is the solution #SpeedLaws
They need to fund the Garda Traffic Corps properly, and reward them when they succeed; they need gardaí on ebikes patrolling in cities, and in visible patrol cars on country roads. And they need big publicity for basic road safety - driving, safety belts, courtesy
#Gardaí #TrafficCorps #RoadDeaths https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2023/09/06/speed-limit-overhaul-to-reduce-100kmh-limit-on-secondary-roads-to-80kmh/

Suburban sprawl and car dependence go hand in hand

“Suburban sprawl leads to more high-speed roads, longer distances between centres of daily activity and more time in cars. All these factors increase the risk of road deaths and injuries.”

“Car-dependent neighbourhoods deprive children of opportunities essential for their health and wellbeing. They miss out on physical activity, unstructured play, social interaction and developing social networks. In addition, traffic noise and air pollution expose them to a wide range of environmental and health problems.”

“How can we develop better planning policies to create neighbourhoods that properly meet families’ needs? Some policies already exist, such as 15-minute or 20-minute neighbourhoods, to reduce private car use for daily activities. But these policies get sidelined when governments promote suburban sprawl and build more freeways.”

“Car-centric planning dates back to the 1950s. Since then, Australian suburban fringe development has largely failed to create child-friendly neighbourhoods.”

“If governments are serious about the needs of families with children, they could start by acknowledging children’s needs and rights to be able to get to their daily destinations without a car. To deliver neighbourhoods that make this possible, governments need to be bold and decisive in their planning.”

“Suburban sprawl and car dependence go hand in hand. Our politicians must commit to urban planning where cars are no longer privileged. Otherwise we deny our children basic rights to learn, play and socialise safely in their own neighbourhoods.”

https://theconversation.com/urban-sprawl-is-not-a-dirty-word-if-the-priority-is-to-meet-all-kids-needs-it-should-be-208670
#RoadDeaths #Backyards #15MinuteNeighbourhoods #sprawl #children #dependence #rights #Bellingen #NSW #roads #pollution #noise #FossilFuel #cars #mobility #so50s

Killer roads

Where is the infrastructure where one does not have to be propelled by fossil fuel at high speed?
Each (new) road should have a shady and separated cycling and walking infrastructure factored in.
Wildlife crossings all along the way.

Australia’s road toll continues to rise with 37 additional people killed in 'accidents' compared to the previous 12 months, despite a nationwide target to halve road deaths by 2030.

“The rising road toll came despite a National Road Safety Action Plan target to halve deaths by 2030 and cut serious transport injuries by 30%. In 2023, Australia is unable to adequately quantify the extent of road trauma, or the effectiveness of interventions being deployed to reduce it.”

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jul/23/australias-road-toll-continues-to-rise-with-most-states-falling-behind-safety-goals

#FatalAccidents #RoadToll #RoadDeaths #RoadTrauma #IntegralAccident #speed #RoadSafety #VisionZero #failure #NorthBankRoad #so50s #NSW #climate #FossilFuel #mobility #carnage #infrastructure #risks #sacrifice

Australia’s rising road toll
“Data shows an increase in #speeding and running red lights in NSW and Victoria. ‘People have less patience with #traffic now after the #roads were much quieter for years.”

“There were 1,204 deaths on Australian roads in the 12 months to 31 March, an almost 6% increase. Of the total deaths, 557 were drivers, up 2.2%, while 189 were passengers, up 3.8%. #Pedestrian deaths increased by 22.6%, rising to 163, while motorcyclist deaths climbed 7% to 246.”

“People in regional Australia were almost five times more likely to die in road #crashes than those living in cities last year, the latest statistics show.'

“#Children involved in a fatal crash are eight times more likely to have been struck by an SUV than a standard car.”

“The exponential rise in freight truck and heavy vehicle movements that has far outstripped population growth.”

Reduce #RoadFatalities> “Design roads to appear riskier, which would slow down traffic and force users to consider each other. As driving becomes automated and requires less constant attention, it has de-skilled us as drivers.”
#Infrastructure for #walking and #cycling would help. Meanwhile, #Bellingen widens country roads..

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/may/21/australias-rising-road-toll-how-the-pandemic-and-a-love-of-big-cars-are-putting-lives-at-risk
#SUV TaxPerks #Trucks AngryMotorists #RoadDeaths #RoadTrauma #RoadDesign #AutomaticDrivingModes #MobilityDesign

#American #RoadDeaths Show an Alarming #RacialGap. An estimated 19 pedestrians a day, on average, were struck and #killed by #automobiles in this country in 2022. The year before, pedestrian deaths reached a 40-year high. Across the country, #Black and #Hispanic #pedestrians are killed at significantly higher rates than #white pedestrians. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/04/26/opinion/road-deaths-racial-gap.html #racialgap #transportation #pedestriandeaths #cyclists

Good read from Chris Boardman

If you think helmets and high-viz clothing are the answer, you're asking the wrong question...

https://www.chrisboardman.com/content/if_you_think_helmets.php

#cycling #hivis #helmets #roadDeaths #netherlands #physicalActivity

The next pandemic: ultra-massive utes https://www.crikey.com.au/2023/02/13/next-pandemic-ultra-massive-utes/ #fordmotorcompany #chevrolets #roaddeaths #roadsafety #words_1000 #Analysis #Society #Hyundai #utes

French road safety campaign targets male attitudes https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/08/toxic-masculinity-fuels-dangerous-driving-like-drink-french-advert-says #ToxicMasculinity #RoadDeaths

"Toxic masculinity fuels dangerous driving like drink, French advert says"

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/08/toxic-masculinity-fuels-dangerous-driving-like-drink-french-advert-says

"A road safety awareness campaign in France is tackling the role of gendered behaviour behind the wheel, warning for the first time that toxic masculinity could be as important a contributing factor to road deaths as speed, alcohol, drugs and fatigue."

#masculinity #RoadDeaths

Companies Join Federal Effort to Reduce #RoadDeaths https://politicaliq.com/2023/02/03/companies-join-federal-effort-to-reduce-road-deaths/ #traffic #driving #politicaliq #news #politics

Paris to vote on whether to ban e-scooters - E-scooters were responsible for 3 deaths and 317 injuries in Paris last year. Meanwhile, across France, over 2,900 road fatalities were recorded. Is there going to be a vote on banning cars, vans and trucks? https://www.irishtimes.com/world/europe/2023/01/23/parisians-to-vote-on-whether-to-ban-rental-e-scooters-following-three-deaths-and-317-injuries/ #RoadDeaths #France #Scooters #Cars

Tesla staged 2016 self-driving demo, says senior Autopilot engineer - Enlarge / Walter Huang's Model X in a tow yard days after his fatal cra... - https://arstechnica.com/?p=1910609 #teslamodelx #walterhuang #roaddeaths #autopilot #tesla #cars

Ars Technica: Tesla staged 2016 self-driving demo, says senior Autopilot engineer https://arstechnica.com/?p=1910609 #Tech #arstechnica #IT #Technology #teslamodelx #WalterHuang #roaddeaths #autopilot #Tesla #Cars

Ars Technica: EVs are getting too heavy and too powerful, safety chief says https://arstechnica.com/?p=1909482 #Tech #arstechnica #IT #Technology #NationalTransportationSafetyBoard #Electricvehicles #pedestriandeaths #electricHummer #F-150Lightning #electricF-150 #electricMini #electricBMW #GMCHummerEV #BMW3Series #carcrashes #curbweight #minicooper #roaddeaths #roadsafety #BMW325i #BMW330i #F-150EV #BMWi4 #Cars #ntsb

https://usa.streetsblog.org/2023/01/09/road-deaths-surged-alongside-covid-but-who-died-exactly/ #USA #RoadDeaths #UnlicensedDrivers #HitAndRun #Carnage #COVID-19

#RoadDeaths rising in #Ireland as #speed laws are resisted #SpeedKills https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/road-deaths-on-the-rise-what-needs-to-change-42206470.html

In most countries, #RoadDeaths dropped during the pandemic. #Ireland was an exception. Why is this? @irishcycle (Graph from https://www.theurbanist.org/2022/12/01/the-urbanists-ryan-packer-discusses-worsening-traffic-safety-crisis-on-kuow/)

"#ParisMarx is joined by #DavidZipper to discuss how #SiliconValley pitched new technologies as the fix for a whole range of #transport problems, and how that really just distracted us from solutions while allowing issues like #RoadDeaths, #emissions, and #traffic to get even worse."

#transportation #PublicTransportation #BigTech #urbanism #CarDependence

https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/tech-isnt-fixing-the-crisis-on-our-streets-w-david-zipper/id1507621076?i=1000588275934

Interactive fatal road crash map of Germany. We could do with this for #Ireland, and since we have far fewer fatal road crashes it would be possible to make it much richer in detail: type of vehicles involved, direction travelled, time & date, injuries, cause of deaths… #RoadDeaths #Crashes #Interactive #Map https://unfallatlas.statistikportal.de/

474 dead and more than 300,000 injured in 5 years

The population of #LowerMainland is 3 million

This toll is the result of choices made by professionals who design places with little regard to safety; and when someone dies, nothing changes.

#BC #Vancouver #RoadDeaths #CarsKill #SystematicSafety