Saturday, December 4, 2010
Reject false climate solutions
mars 2 earth: greed times infinity: "“Market-based mitigation strategies such as the Clean Development Mechanism, and carbon offsets, including forest offsets and REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) further threaten our human rights, including our right to free prior and informed consent among many others. Our land and territories, food sovereignty, bio-diversity, cultural practices and traditional life ways are being placed in further jeopardy, and we reject these false solutions.”"
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Free transport campaign spreads to Greece
REPEAL OF EISITIRIOY TOY FOR ALL URBAN: "We propose to have public transport without a ticket, auditors, vendors, etc.
Anyway now we are paying the cost of public transport both through ticketing and through the pre-calculation due to funding deficits. TO OWN IT, and ultimately fairer, more burden on high incomes."
FREE PUBLIC TRANSPORT FOR ALL IN GREECE
Προτείνουμε να έχουμε αστικές συγκοινωνίες ΧΩΡΙΣ ΕΙΣΙΤΗΡΙΟ, ελεγκτές, εκδοτήρια κλπ.
Έτσι κι αλλιώς πληρώνουμε σήμερα το κόστος των ΜΜΜ τόσο μέσω εισιτηρίων όσο και μέσω του προ-υπολογισμού λόγω χρηματοδότησης των ελλειμμάτων τους. TO ΙΔΙΟ ΕΙΝΑΙ, σε τελευταία ανάλυση και δικαιότερο, για επιβαρύνονται περισσότερο τα υψηλά εισοδήματα.
-
Anyway now we are paying the cost of public transport both through ticketing and through the pre-calculation due to funding deficits. TO OWN IT, and ultimately fairer, more burden on high incomes."
FREE PUBLIC TRANSPORT FOR ALL IN GREECE
Προτείνουμε να έχουμε αστικές συγκοινωνίες ΧΩΡΙΣ ΕΙΣΙΤΗΡΙΟ, ελεγκτές, εκδοτήρια κλπ.
Έτσι κι αλλιώς πληρώνουμε σήμερα το κόστος των ΜΜΜ τόσο μέσω εισιτηρίων όσο και μέσω του προ-υπολογισμού λόγω χρηματοδότησης των ελλειμμάτων τους. TO ΙΔΙΟ ΕΙΝΑΙ, σε τελευταία ανάλυση και δικαιότερο, για επιβαρύνονται περισσότερο τα υψηλά εισοδήματα.
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Saturday, November 20, 2010
More people on buses in fare-free month - Local News - Bay of Plenty Times
More people on buses in fare-free month - Local News - Bay of Plenty Times: "More than 5000 Tauranga people packed the city's buses on the opening Saturday of a new fare-free promotion being offered this month.
Council planners are awed at the number of people who have taken advantage of the free Saturday Bayhopper service, which aims to bring more people into the city centre."
Council planners are awed at the number of people who have taken advantage of the free Saturday Bayhopper service, which aims to bring more people into the city centre."
Friday, November 12, 2010
Do not worry -- we will continue the struggle
'Fed up' NSW Labor MP quits
Mr Gibson says the party can still win the next election if it focuses on public transport.abc.net.au
"It's up to the Labor Party whether they pursue those ideals," he said.
"I've talked about public transport for probably 20 years. Free public transport: it's nothing new, it's in many cities of the world today, it'd be a winner here."
A colleague of Mr Gibson, Wollongong MP Noreen Hay, says he will be missed.
"I think Paul has been a great contribution here in the parliament," she said.
The former rugby league first grade player had been threatening to stand as an independent if pushed to resign.
The Nationals leader Andrew Stoner wants to know why he is apparently going quietly.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
CEOs for Cities :: The Grocery Loop
CEOs for Cities :: The Grocery Loop: "Meeting our daily needs without owning a car means being able to walk, bike or take public transportation to get to work, see friends, run errands and even buy groceries. Unfortunately, high quality grocery stores are hard to come by in many urban neighborhoods, forcing even the most reticent among us to get in our cars and drive to the suburbs for fresh fruits and vegetables.
Not so in Providence.
At least not if graphic designer and US Initiative collaborator Lindsay Kinkade gets her way. With a team of graduate students from the Rhode Island School of Design, Lindsay has proposed a creative solution called The Grocery Loop, a food-centric bus route designed for the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority. Stops include not only supermarkets but also farmers' markets and ethnic grocers. A graphic identity for an existing bus and a smart phone app further enhance the riders' experience."
Not so in Providence.
At least not if graphic designer and US Initiative collaborator Lindsay Kinkade gets her way. With a team of graduate students from the Rhode Island School of Design, Lindsay has proposed a creative solution called The Grocery Loop, a food-centric bus route designed for the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority. Stops include not only supermarkets but also farmers' markets and ethnic grocers. A graphic identity for an existing bus and a smart phone app further enhance the riders' experience."
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
October 1 fare rises wrong for Hutt
Press Release – Valley Action Network
Public transport fare increases which come into effect on Friday show why Hutt residents should vote to change their council, says grassroots campaign group VAN – Valley Action Network.
October 1 fare rises wrong for Hutt
Media release VAN – Valley Action Network 27 September, 2010
Public transport fare increases which come into effect on Friday show why Hutt residents should vote to change their council, says grassroots campaign group VAN – Valley Action Network.
Fares for trains, buses and ferries are going up by an average of 5.5 percent across the Greater Wellington Region, due to the GST increase and a government Farebox Recovery Policy designed to make passengers pay more.
The cost of some journeys will rise by 100 percent. Popular concessions like the monthly Gold Pass are also being discontinued.
“Passengers in the Wellington region already pay the highest proportion of public transport costs of any city in the country”, commented VAN spokesperson Grant Brookes. “Further increases just can’t be justified.
“Transport is a big issue in Lower Hutt. Over a third of Hutt residents who have jobs commute outside the city to get to work.
“We all know the frustration of sitting in traffic jams, wishing there was an easier way to get around. What’s worse, all these car journeys are pumping out more and more climate-changing greenhouse gases.
“Hutt City Council supports spending over a billion dollars on roads, which will only fuel more of the same. We need a council with real vision to solve these problems.
“We believe Hutt City should join the growing call for free public transport. Not only will it serve the people and help save the planet, it’s also a cheaper alternative for ratepayers.”
VAN – Valley Action Network is standing candidates for Hutt City Council committed to:
* A city for the residents – not for property developers & investors * No water meters, no privatisation – protect river & residents * Build council houses – create jobs, assets & affordable homes * No GST on rates – a tax on a tax is robbery * Council change, not climate change – a future for our kids * Free public transport – it makes climate sense & serves the people
Our full public transport policy is reprinted below.
==========
Free and frequent public transport – it makes climate sense and serves the people
World oil resources are growing increasingly scarce. The reserves that remain are getting harder and riskier to retrieve, leading to disasters like the massive spill in the Gulf of Mexico – a disaster which could be repeated off the North Island’s East Coast if similar deep-water drilling goes ahead there. Meanwhile, transport accounts for 36 percent of Greater Wellington’s climate-changing carbon emissions. VAN believes that free and frequent public transport is needed if we’re going to make efficient use of these limited and increasingly expensive resources, decrease our carbon emissions and reduce congestion on our roads – benefiting everyone. Transport is a big issue in our city. Over a third of Hutt residents who have jobs commute outside the city to get to work. Many more commute for family and social reasons. We’re all-too-familiar with sitting in gridlocked traffic on the Esplanade during rush hour, wishing there was a quicker way to get around. Investing in free and frequent public transport would make buses and trains an attractive option, taking cars off the road. Yet on October 1, instead of decreasing fares, public transport operators will raise fares once again – partly due to pressure from central government. Earlier this year, our council sat silently as other city and regional councils made submissions against transport minister Steven Joyce’s plans to make public transport users pay more for services. The submissions had some effect in watering down this policy. Joyce singled out Hutt Valley train users as a group who should pay more. VAN will stand up to central government against fare increases for Hutt Valley residents. VAN also believes that public transport should be more frequent and reliable. We will advocate for increases in rail services, because trains run largely on renewable energy, and for more frequent feeder buses to train stations. We would advocate for bus lanes which would keep buses running to schedule, and cycle ways that would increase safety and promote this emission-free mode of transport. Another problem at present is that bus companies are privately owned, but get around half of their income from public funds. It makes sense for bus services to be publicly run, because then every dollar spent could go on providing quality public transport. Councils know that free public transport decreases traffic congestion. Many cities overseas have already introduced it. New Zealand cities like Auckland, Christchurch, Palmerston North and Invercargill run some free public transport services. Trains will be free in Wellington on Rugby World Cup quarter final day. Wellington Regional Councillor Paul Bruce has called for free inner-city buses in Wellington on weekends. But at the moment, the main focus locally is on building expensive new roads. Hutt City Council supports spending over a billion dollars on a single new motorway through Transmission Gully. They also want a $76 million Cross Valley Link road and a Grenada-Petone link worth $250 million more, which will destroy the Korokoro Reserve in Belmont Regional Park. Building more roads will encourage residents into cars in the short term, burning more fossil fuels and increasing carbon emissions and traffic jams. In the long term the roads could lie empty, useless monuments to short-term thinking in a future devoid of cars and cheap oil. Recent official analysis has concluded that the Cross Valley Link has a low cost benefit ratio, meaning the government is unlikely to fund it. Hutt City residents will be left to bear the cost. So far $18 million has been set aside by the council for the Cross Valley Link. By contrast, the annual cost of making all of Wellington’s public transport free is just $75 million – even cheaper if bus services were publicly owned, avoiding the need to fund a private profit. If elected, VAN will push now to divert a small portion of the massive roading budget for the region towards public transport, and make it frequent and free.
We will:
• Advocate for public transport over more road-building in all public forums • Scrap plans to waste millions of ratepayer dollars on a new Cross Valley Link • Press the Greater Wellington Regional Council to increase the frequency of rail services on the Hutt Valley line • Advocate for more bus and cycle lanes in the Hutt Valley • Support other authorities and campaigners in the region to lobby the government for more money for public transport • Oppose any government moves to privatise Tranz Metro or the rail network • Investigate plans for local councils to directly run bus services, and then move to reduce fares towards zero.
Content Sourced from scoop.co.nz
Public transport fare increases which come into effect on Friday show why Hutt residents should vote to change their council, says grassroots campaign group VAN – Valley Action Network.
October 1 fare rises wrong for Hutt
Media release VAN – Valley Action Network 27 September, 2010
Public transport fare increases which come into effect on Friday show why Hutt residents should vote to change their council, says grassroots campaign group VAN – Valley Action Network.
Fares for trains, buses and ferries are going up by an average of 5.5 percent across the Greater Wellington Region, due to the GST increase and a government Farebox Recovery Policy designed to make passengers pay more.
The cost of some journeys will rise by 100 percent. Popular concessions like the monthly Gold Pass are also being discontinued.
“Passengers in the Wellington region already pay the highest proportion of public transport costs of any city in the country”, commented VAN spokesperson Grant Brookes. “Further increases just can’t be justified.
“Transport is a big issue in Lower Hutt. Over a third of Hutt residents who have jobs commute outside the city to get to work.
“We all know the frustration of sitting in traffic jams, wishing there was an easier way to get around. What’s worse, all these car journeys are pumping out more and more climate-changing greenhouse gases.
“Hutt City Council supports spending over a billion dollars on roads, which will only fuel more of the same. We need a council with real vision to solve these problems.
“We believe Hutt City should join the growing call for free public transport. Not only will it serve the people and help save the planet, it’s also a cheaper alternative for ratepayers.”
VAN – Valley Action Network is standing candidates for Hutt City Council committed to:
* A city for the residents – not for property developers & investors * No water meters, no privatisation – protect river & residents * Build council houses – create jobs, assets & affordable homes * No GST on rates – a tax on a tax is robbery * Council change, not climate change – a future for our kids * Free public transport – it makes climate sense & serves the people
Our full public transport policy is reprinted below.
==========
Free and frequent public transport – it makes climate sense and serves the people
World oil resources are growing increasingly scarce. The reserves that remain are getting harder and riskier to retrieve, leading to disasters like the massive spill in the Gulf of Mexico – a disaster which could be repeated off the North Island’s East Coast if similar deep-water drilling goes ahead there. Meanwhile, transport accounts for 36 percent of Greater Wellington’s climate-changing carbon emissions. VAN believes that free and frequent public transport is needed if we’re going to make efficient use of these limited and increasingly expensive resources, decrease our carbon emissions and reduce congestion on our roads – benefiting everyone. Transport is a big issue in our city. Over a third of Hutt residents who have jobs commute outside the city to get to work. Many more commute for family and social reasons. We’re all-too-familiar with sitting in gridlocked traffic on the Esplanade during rush hour, wishing there was a quicker way to get around. Investing in free and frequent public transport would make buses and trains an attractive option, taking cars off the road. Yet on October 1, instead of decreasing fares, public transport operators will raise fares once again – partly due to pressure from central government. Earlier this year, our council sat silently as other city and regional councils made submissions against transport minister Steven Joyce’s plans to make public transport users pay more for services. The submissions had some effect in watering down this policy. Joyce singled out Hutt Valley train users as a group who should pay more. VAN will stand up to central government against fare increases for Hutt Valley residents. VAN also believes that public transport should be more frequent and reliable. We will advocate for increases in rail services, because trains run largely on renewable energy, and for more frequent feeder buses to train stations. We would advocate for bus lanes which would keep buses running to schedule, and cycle ways that would increase safety and promote this emission-free mode of transport. Another problem at present is that bus companies are privately owned, but get around half of their income from public funds. It makes sense for bus services to be publicly run, because then every dollar spent could go on providing quality public transport. Councils know that free public transport decreases traffic congestion. Many cities overseas have already introduced it. New Zealand cities like Auckland, Christchurch, Palmerston North and Invercargill run some free public transport services. Trains will be free in Wellington on Rugby World Cup quarter final day. Wellington Regional Councillor Paul Bruce has called for free inner-city buses in Wellington on weekends. But at the moment, the main focus locally is on building expensive new roads. Hutt City Council supports spending over a billion dollars on a single new motorway through Transmission Gully. They also want a $76 million Cross Valley Link road and a Grenada-Petone link worth $250 million more, which will destroy the Korokoro Reserve in Belmont Regional Park. Building more roads will encourage residents into cars in the short term, burning more fossil fuels and increasing carbon emissions and traffic jams. In the long term the roads could lie empty, useless monuments to short-term thinking in a future devoid of cars and cheap oil. Recent official analysis has concluded that the Cross Valley Link has a low cost benefit ratio, meaning the government is unlikely to fund it. Hutt City residents will be left to bear the cost. So far $18 million has been set aside by the council for the Cross Valley Link. By contrast, the annual cost of making all of Wellington’s public transport free is just $75 million – even cheaper if bus services were publicly owned, avoiding the need to fund a private profit. If elected, VAN will push now to divert a small portion of the massive roading budget for the region towards public transport, and make it frequent and free.
We will:
• Advocate for public transport over more road-building in all public forums • Scrap plans to waste millions of ratepayer dollars on a new Cross Valley Link • Press the Greater Wellington Regional Council to increase the frequency of rail services on the Hutt Valley line • Advocate for more bus and cycle lanes in the Hutt Valley • Support other authorities and campaigners in the region to lobby the government for more money for public transport • Oppose any government moves to privatise Tranz Metro or the rail network • Investigate plans for local councils to directly run bus services, and then move to reduce fares towards zero.
Content Sourced from scoop.co.nz
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Valley Action Network
We Stand For:
- A city for the residents - not for property developers & investors.
- No GST on rates - a tax on a tax is robbery.
- Free public transport - it makes climate sense & serves the people.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Further Abstract: The Economic Benefits of Free Public Transport
By Raphie de Santos
“Most of the arguments for free public transport (FPT) focus on the environmental benefits and the enrichment of people’s lives by allowing them to travel no matter their financial situation. However, it brings many economic benefits to wider society. For example, with vehicle traffic set to rise by 50% over the next 25 years and a corresponding doubling of the time commuters loose because of congestion, FPT would greatly reduce this lost time. The lost time that could be put to more socially useful purposes is just part of the gains of FPT. Being caught in commuting traffic also creates the wrong frame of mind to tackle future tasks for the day – the multiple problems created by traffic chaos can be measured by the car commuter pain index in which London just ranks behind Madrid and Sao Paulo. FPT would greatly reduce this pain.
The design, administration, construction, maintenance, running, assembly, commissioning and servicing of a FPT system would create hundreds of thousands of jobs and apprenticeships for our young and old. By putting these people to work there would be huge savings in welfare benefits while tax revenues would increase. They would boost the economy not only from the building and running of the FPT system but their own personalexpenditure in the wider economy”.
Raphie De Santos, Financial Analyst and member of the Scottish Socialist Party
Raphie was head of Equity Derivatives Research and Strategy at Goldman Sachs International. He was an advisor on derivatives and financial markets to the Bank of England, London Stock Exchange, London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange and the Italian Ministry of Finance.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Deadly antics of climate deniers
Yes, man-made climate change denial is about politics, but it’s more pragmatic than ideological. The politics have been shaped around the demands of industrial lobby groups, which happen, in many cases, to fund those who articulate them. Right-wingers are making monkeys of themselves over climate change not just because their beliefs take precedence over the evidence, but also because their interests take precedence over their beliefs. George Monbiot
Thursday, September 9, 2010
NZ message of support for FPT conference
A message of full support and solidarity for your inspirational Inaugural
Campaign for Free Public Transport conference in October, from the campaign
in New Zealand: Fare-Free New Zealand.
Roger Fowler
Editor
www.farefreenz.blogspot.com
You can contact the conference organisers at: manchester@freepublictransports.com
Campaign for Free Public Transport conference in October, from the campaign
in New Zealand: Fare-Free New Zealand.
Roger Fowler
Editor
www.farefreenz.blogspot.com
You can contact the conference organisers at: manchester@freepublictransports.com
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
Welcome to our gridlocked nightmare
Epic Traffic Jam in China Enters Its 9th Day
Image by © David Gray/Reuters/Corbis
Nothing is worse than sitting in traffic, right? How about sitting in traffic for nine days?
A 100-kilometer-long traffic jam in China's Heibei Province has left thousands of truck drivers stuck on the interstate heading towards Beijing since August 14. What's worse, officials are saying that the jam could continue for up to a month!
The original jam was caused by roadside construction work, but has been made worse by minor car accidents and breakdowns. (See the 50 worst cars of all time.)
The traffic jam has sparked some entrepreneurial spirit for local residents, which has added to traffic-hostages' annoyance. One truck driver complained that vendors were selling instant noodles for “four times the original price while I wait in the congestion.”
Makes that twenty-minute wait for the bus seem a little better, eh? (via the Global Times)
Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2010/08/23/epic-traffic-jam-in-china-enters-its-9th-day/#ixzz0xkZ2b5AE
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Biofuels: Worse than useless
Renewable energy, for example, is a crucial part of every national and international strategy for curbing emissions, including plans to promote biofuels. However, rising ethanol production has been linked to losses of grassland habitats, while booming demand for palm oil, some of which is turned into biodiesel, is fuelling the clearance of biodiverse-rich forests across south-east Asia. TheEcologist
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Oceans die. Car production continues. Oil wars continue.
One of the most destructive and swift coral bleaching events ever recorded is underway in the waters off Indonesia, where water temperatures have climbed into the low 90s, according to data released by a conservation group this week. livescience
Permafrost Melting Releases Mercury Into Swedish Lake
by Matthew McDermott, New York, NY 
on 08.17.10
photo: Rob Lee via flickr
Lots of environmentally bad stuff is happening as the world's permafrost melts, mostly in the realm of releasing stored greenhouse gases. But, as Conservation points out, a new report in the journal Science of the Total Environment finds that as a permafrost melts in northern Sweden, stored mercury has begun leaking from a peat bog into a nearby lake--something which could expand as temperatures continue to rise.
In addition to storing large amounts of greenhouse gases, peatlands also store mercury--some from natural sources, most coming from the emissions of burning fossil fuels. As you hopefully know, mercury and water is a highly toxic mix for life.
The study finds, "there is a very real potential that a substantial amount of mercury, and other organically bound and stored contaminants, might be released into arctic and sub-arctic surface waters from thawing permafrost."
Sediment Mercury Levels Rising at Rate Not Seen in Centuries
To come to that conclusion a team of researchers used core samples from a peat bog and lake-bottom sediments from northern Sweden to determine shifting mercury concentrations and compare them to past climate data. They found that "sediment mercury levels are now rising at 8.3 micrograms per square meter per year, a rate not seen in several centuries."
Read the original: Climate driven release of carbon and mercury from permafrost mires increase mercury loading to sub-arctic lakes
Friday, August 6, 2010
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Death of the Car
Cars are a lie. The real costs of the mobility, freedom, comfort and power that they promise include environmental and cultural mayhem in oil-producing regions like the Niger delta; the Iraq war; the 1.2 million people who die every year at the hands of the motoring Moloch; ecological disasters caused by oil spills; and the fouling of earth, air and water during all phases of the life-cycle from the extraction of raw materials to the eventual disposal of the corpses.
As much as 35% of urban land is colonised by cars - by noise, toxic fumes and acts of violence waiting to happen. This appalling monoculture has turned our cities into wastelands, and displaced our primary needs for peace and beauty on to ever more remote and threatened patches of wilderness. Car-based mobility has trumped not just community but common sense; divide the time spent driving, paying for, servicing and grooming a car by the distance travelled and the answer is walking speed.
A quarter of all carbon emissions are generated by road transport. Our addiction to cars is holding the future hostage and driving a planet to death.
[With thanks from cvrjourneyjourney.blogspot.com]
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
The Locals: Public transport in Auckland
In the first part of our series on local body elections we took a look at housing, libraries and water issues. In this second part of our season on the haunted house of local governance we turn the spotlight on another important issue - public transport.The only place you’ll find more out of control cars than Kiwi horror The Locals are the streets of the nation’s largest metropolitan centre- Auckland. Local government politicians are like McDonald’s advertisements, both profess to promote healthy alternatives but in reality all they do is clog up arteries and arterial routes.
Big business have done all they can to ensure that Auckland has a public transport that is ridiculed across the world. Visiting Canadian economist Jim Stanford would write in one of his county's major papers a column that deserves wide republishing around Aotearoa,
City planners impose various pseudo-quantitative performance indicators on the contractors, such as sophisticated GPS systems to monitor on-time performance. But even this minimal nod to public accountability produces unintended consequences. Bus companies fear being fined for missing schedule targets, but are driven by the profit motive to ruthlessly minimize outlays on equipment and staff. The resulting pressure is intense on drivers (some of whom don’t even get paid overtime) to meet unrealistic timetables – a media exposé last year showed this often requires breaking the speed limit. Several times, we’ve watched an awaited bus race by without stopping, the driver shrugging helplessly and pointing at his watch.
That anecdote sums up perfectly the system’s irrationality. The top priority becomes ensuring that a private company reaches profit targets, not picking up people who need a ride.
Yet Aucklanders still pay for transit – three times over. Once through taxes – subsidies to private transit consume half of all property taxes collected by the regional government. Then again at the fare box. And finally a third time through inconvenience. No wonder Aucklanders take transit one-quarter as often as Torontonians.
So before you get carried away with enthusiasm for the inherent efficiency of the private sector, visit Auckland. It’s beautiful. But you’ll need to rent a car.
A disaster all right, public transport run down and privatised in the interests of corporate vultures. As Chris Trotter summed it up in a post on his blog,
The Auckland we’ve ended up with is a city of individuals who travel by car. It’s a city based on the tried and true formula: "real-estate equals roads – roads equal real-estate". This is what I call the "Auckland Racket", and it underpins the city’s speculative economy, its nouveau-riche property-developers’ culture and, most importantly, its far-right neoliberal politics.If anyone has any doubt that selling the country’s rail network to the robber barons of the ‘80s and ‘ 90s like Michael Fay and David Richwhite was a bad idea they need only read the short history of the deregulation of railways provided by the Campaign for Better Transport,
The new owners began massive “rationalisation”, which meant sacking thousands of staff, closing stations & depots, cutting passenger services & some branch lines. The “human presence” of railways vanished as the workforce necessary to market, manage, load & operate the system were laid off. Soon less staff meant less business & less profit. This neglect of customer’s needs was quickly catered for by hungry truckers who soon captured the freight market from smaller business in the provinces.Tomorrow the Green Party will rally its supporters of public transport for the launch of a campaign- Fast-Track the CBD Rail Loop. Under the slogan “A Super Rail Network for a Super City” the Greens aims to put pressure on Government policy makers for a “greater sense of urgency”. The facebook event has just 11 attendees suggesting that Aucklanders themselves aren’t all that bothered about the rail network. Yet a 2003 survey showed that poor public transport was the second most common complaint about living in the Auckland region (traffic congestion was number one).
According to the giddy McCarthyites of the Act Party, public transport advocates are, “scared of cars because automobiles allow individuals to make their own decisions. Car drivers can turn left or right, they can travel for miles or stay in the city, they can live out and commute in or live in and commute out. Planners and politicians can’t control them.”
Riiiggghhttt. I mean how many car turns can a car make when it is stuck in gridlock? The hilarious reality is that Auckland’s traffic jams and low public transport use are the direct result of the privatisation shock doctrine that the new right darlings brought about in Auckland in the early 1990s: “bus boardings declined from 42 million per year in 1990 to 31 million in 1994 – a drop which is not correlated with urban density or dispersed employment, as neither of these factors changed substantially over the period”
We don’t even have to look very far back to realise that this current crop of local body politicians hate sensible transport. Take the November ’08 announcements in John Bank’s “Christmas Grinch budget” where he slashed public transport in order to fund more roads and the Rugby World Cup piss-up. Socialist Aotearoa at the time said, “The $345 million dollar Eastern Highway will mean we can keep on driving till the icecaps melt and the oil wells run dry. Just don’t worry about what we’ll do after the oil runs out because this Council plans to cut footpath, cycleways and walkways spending by $66 million, public transport spending by $20.8 million and new park-and-ride facilities will be slashed by $5 million. So say hello to Smog City, a city where Banks can drive his Bently down the freeway while we all eat dust.”
2010 and not a lot has changed for Auckland. The Auckland Regional Council’s regional growth strategy makes for alarming reading,
• Car use is growing by around 4% pa.
• Congestion is perceived by the public to be one of the region’s most significant problems.
• Vehicle use , especially under congested conditions, is a major source of pollution.
• Total cost of congestion to the region is estimated in the order of $750 million pa including loss of production and costs of delay in moving goods.
Both of Auckland’s mayoral frontrunners profess support for further development of Auckland’s public transport system but cynics might say there proposals for integrated ticketing and upgrading ferry and rail networks are simply- too little, too late. Aucklanders who seriously want to unfuck the public transport system will need to do more than vote to end local Government inaction. Getting active in community campaigns for free and frequent public transport and against further roading spending is the first step. Fighting for public ownership of transport companies and free and frequent public transport as well as a massive investment in the innercity loop, rail link with the airport and a cycle lane on the bridge won't be easy. Direct action like the GetAcross Harbour Bridge protest or the anti-SH20 protests will no doubt become more common, but Aucklanders have to keep fighting for these improvements and more if they want a liveable, sustainable, free flowing and connected worldclass city in the future.Post by Omar. From socialistaotearoa.blogspot.com
Moving our city with free public transport
The Dominion Post reported; “Round-the-clock gridlock has been predicted if The Terrace and Mt Victoria tunnels are closed for five weeks to kickstart a $80 million project to remedy serious safety problems.”
Could we use this sense of crisis to achieve immediate improvements in public transport services and safe cycle and walk ways between Wellington CBD and its suburbs?
A report to the Greater Wellington’s Transport and Access Committee is proposing that all fares be increased from 1 October 2010, to take account of the GST increase, and to produce a 3% increase in fare revenue to balance increased costs
Fare increases: bad timing
Greater Wellington Regional Councillor Paul Bruce said that coinciding Public Transport fare increases with the Mt Victoria tunnel safety upgrades is bad timing. “If we are going to close off routes, we must provide some counter balancing measure to help people move freely about Wellington city.
One of these measures could be moving the subsidy for free weekend public parking to zero inner city fares. Mr Bruce said that many other cities provide zero fare services, including Auckland, Christchurch and Invercargill.
Use the business levy
Shifting some of the Wellington City Council business levy to cover bus fares in the central business district ties in with a move towards integrated fares, allowing people arriving from outer suburbs to proceed through to Courtenay Place without any extra cost.
This will attract extra riders and lead to fewer cars in the inner city area, which in turn will improve traffic flow and air quality and thus ambience and … retail sales. Convenient public transport will also give an added pull to tourists.
Other advantages to alternative transport
There are also health, social and environmental advantages to funding alternative modes of transport such as cycling, walking and public transport.
Physical inactivity accounts for almost 10 percent of New Zealand’s 20 leading causes of death. It is a contributor to obesity and type 2 diabetes, which together cost the health system over $500 million per year. In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency is now promoting “car reduced” communities. And the British government’s 2001 planning document says: “Development comprising jobs, shopping, leisure and services should not be designed and located on the assumption that the car will represent the only realistic means of access for the vast majority of people”.
Car parking
Wellington is an extreme case in terms of provision of car parks, with the highest number of parking spaces per job, according to figures collated by Kerry Wood. We outrank Christchurch and Auckland, and well known US cities, Phoenic, Denver, and Detroit.
Wellington City Council “free” weekend car parks cost a lot in foregone revenue, in fact four times more than the inner city public transport weekend fare, and about half the total weekend bus revenue take. Free parking contributes to vehicle pollution and traffic snarl ups as cars search for parking spaces, and may actually diminish retail sales. In a time of diminishing resources, a subsidy for free parking isn’t the best plan.
Creative solutions
Improving Wellington’s transport network can happen with some creative solutions. Our transport network includes every bus, car, skateboard or pair of feet that people use to get around, each with different requirements, whether in use or not.
Wellington’s compact size means space is at a premium downtown.What goes unnoticed are the ways in which we prioritise and even sponsor car use above every alternative. Private cars are the part of that network that take up the most space and energy, for the least return.
Instead, providing some real alternatives, such as zero inner city public transport fares combined with safer cycling after the removal of some parking, enhances the village atmosphere that we all seek.
Paul Bruce concluded that the closure of the Mt Victoria tunnel for safety upgrades should be seen as an opportunity to promote our public transport system. “Greater Wellington provides a free connecting bus service on the Kapiti Coast to connect with train services, and has found this to be a great success. What about moving towards zero weekend fares for Wellington city?”
Number of CBD parking spaces in 1996 per 1000 CBD jobs
(figures collated by Kerry Wood)
| Wellington | 1050 |
| Christchurch | 940 |
| Auckland | 650 |
| Sourced figures: | |
| Phoenix | 910 |
| Denver | 730 |
| Detroit | 710 |
| Perth | 630 |
| Houston | 610 |
| Los Angeles | 520 |
| Portland | 400 |
| Melbourne | 340 |
| Brisbane | 320 |
| Sydney | 220 |
| Copenhagen | 220 |
| Zürich | 140 |
| London | 120 |
| New York | 60 |
Zero fare public transport services
| Auckland | Free downtown bus loop, ‘City Circuit’ |
| Christchurch | Free downtown bus loop, ‘The Shuttle’ |
| Invercargill | Free downtown bus & free off peak buses |
| Adelaide | Free downtown tram route |
| Sydney | Free downtown city bus loop |
| Melbourne | Free downtown tram and bus loop |
| Chapel Hill , USA | Free area-wide bus services |
| Hasselt , Belgium | Free area-wide bus services |
Links
Economic benefits of people-friendly streets
Parking lots to parks – designing livable cities by Lester R Brown
Paved with gold – the real value of street design – by CABE, UK
Economic value of walkability – Victoria Transport Policy Institute [PDF, 233KB]
Bachels, M, Newman, P and Kenworthy, J (1999). Indicators of urban transport efficiency in New Zealand’s main cities. Perth: Murdoch University, ISBN 0 86905 669 7
Newman, P and Kenworthy, J (1999). Sustainability and cities — overcoming automobile dependence. ISBN 1 55963 660 2.
The High Cost of Free Parking, Donald Shoup estimates that off-street parking subsidies in the United States are worth at least $127 billion a year.
For more information
Contact Regional Councillor Paul Bruce
paul.bruce@greens.org.nz
phone: 04 9728699 cellphone:021 02719370
From www.wellingtongreens.org.nz
Friday, July 23, 2010
Free transit promotes social inclusion
Let us reclaim human interaction - get rid of the anti-social private auto
Further evidence of the positive effects of free public transport can be gleaned from the Belgian city of Hasselt. Not only did use of Hasselt’s bus system explode once zero fare were introduced (from 331,551 in the old situation to an astonishing 3.2 million - and this for a city of only 70,000 people), with all the obvious benefits this shift suggests, but also, some rather unexpected advantages were produced as well. For example, following the introduction of zero fares, the number of visits to patients in the city’s hospitals was reported to have “increased enormously” (van Goeverden, 2006: 7). This suggests that individuals and families will take more of a role in terms of caring responsibilities if they can actually access the people who need to be cared for, and this could represent incredible indirect savings for the state in terms of social and health care budgets. Indeed, Harvard political scientist Robert Putnam has demonstrated statistically that people who socialise and participate in social activities are on average happier and healthier (2000:326-335). Of course you can only do this if you can get around, an evidence from a wide range of sources indicate that many people cannot ‘get around’ (see Church et al, 2000; Graham and Marvin, 2001; Hine and Mitchell, 2003; Knolwes, 2006 New Economics Foundation, 2003; Pooley et al, 2005; Raje, 2007; Reisig and Hobbiss, 2000; Shaw, 2006; Social Exclusion Unit, 2002 and 2003; Urry, 2007).
Bob Jeffrey - Towards a Sustainable Transport Policy
Further evidence of the positive effects of free public transport can be gleaned from the Belgian city of Hasselt. Not only did use of Hasselt’s bus system explode once zero fare were introduced (from 331,551 in the old situation to an astonishing 3.2 million - and this for a city of only 70,000 people), with all the obvious benefits this shift suggests, but also, some rather unexpected advantages were produced as well. For example, following the introduction of zero fares, the number of visits to patients in the city’s hospitals was reported to have “increased enormously” (van Goeverden, 2006: 7). This suggests that individuals and families will take more of a role in terms of caring responsibilities if they can actually access the people who need to be cared for, and this could represent incredible indirect savings for the state in terms of social and health care budgets. Indeed, Harvard political scientist Robert Putnam has demonstrated statistically that people who socialise and participate in social activities are on average happier and healthier (2000:326-335). Of course you can only do this if you can get around, an evidence from a wide range of sources indicate that many people cannot ‘get around’ (see Church et al, 2000; Graham and Marvin, 2001; Hine and Mitchell, 2003; Knolwes, 2006 New Economics Foundation, 2003; Pooley et al, 2005; Raje, 2007; Reisig and Hobbiss, 2000; Shaw, 2006; Social Exclusion Unit, 2002 and 2003; Urry, 2007).
Bob Jeffrey - Towards a Sustainable Transport Policy
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Celebrity Stroke of Genius: Free Public Transport
July 16
Well known Australian author Graeme Base suggests free public transport. Certainly a good one for the wallet and bound to make happier commuters! It may even get more people using public transport so better for the environment and perhaps a more active option for commuters?
"Make all public transport completely free. With no insanely expensive ticketing system to keep going wrong, and no army of inspectors to police the network, plus massive productivity gains and lower health costs (mental and physical) from the easing of the ravages of traffic congestion – we could spend the savings on additional trams, trains and buses. Why, we could even bring Connies back – not to collect fares, but to help get prams on board, tell you what stop you need for the museum and to whistle jaunty tunes."
From: www.strokeofgenius.com.au
July 16
Well known Australian author Graeme Base suggests free public transport. Certainly a good one for the wallet and bound to make happier commuters! It may even get more people using public transport so better for the environment and perhaps a more active option for commuters?
"Make all public transport completely free. With no insanely expensive ticketing system to keep going wrong, and no army of inspectors to police the network, plus massive productivity gains and lower health costs (mental and physical) from the easing of the ravages of traffic congestion – we could spend the savings on additional trams, trains and buses. Why, we could even bring Connies back – not to collect fares, but to help get prams on board, tell you what stop you need for the museum and to whistle jaunty tunes."
From: www.strokeofgenius.com.au
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Hutt support for 'fare rise rebels'
June 29, 2010
Members of Hutt City’s grassroots council ticket, VAN – Valley Action Network, will be attending the Greater Wellington Regional Council meeting today, supporting a group of commuters, dubbed the “fair rise rebels” by the Dominion Post, protesting against train fare hikes on the Wairarapa Line.
“We’re going because commuters everywhere are facing a common problem”, says VAN spokesperson Michelle Ducat. “It’s the Wairarapa Line today, the Hutt Valley Line tomorrow.
“Last year, the government’s transport agency released a ‘farebox recovery’ plan to make passengers around the country pay a bigger share of the cost of public transport.
“Transport minister Steven Joyce pushed for the plan, to divert even more public money into building costly motorways. He has publicly singled out Hutt Valley rail commuters as another group who will have to pay extra.
“The Greater Wellington Regional Council made a submission opposing the plan and won important concessions, including the right for councils to set their own targets for how much of the cost should be borne by passengers.
“But under the new rules, says GWRC Design and Development Manager Brian Baxter, councils will still come under ’strong influence’ to make passengers pay up.
“The government already spends seven times as much on roads as it does on all other kinds of transport put together”, commented Michelle. “People know that this fuels ever-growing car use and traffic jams, more reliance on dwindling cheap oil and more climate-changing greenhouse gas emissions.
“Come July 1, it’s also forcing consumers to bear the cost of an Emissions Trading Scheme that’s been watered down and won’t stop climate change anyway.
“To fix the problems in a way that doesn’t shift the burden onto grassroots people, the country needs to move in the opposite direction, towards ideas like Free Public Transport.
“At the very least, local councils need to unite against this latest government farebox plan.
“Forty submissions were received on the farebox plan. Individuals, regional and city councils from around New Zealand spoke up against the government’s push to raise fares.
“Hutt City Council said nothing. This is just not good enough”, she said.
“Hutt residents deserve, and need a council that stands up for us, and for our environment.
“This is why VAN – Valley Action Network is standing for election to Hutt City Council in October.
“We’ll be pushing for Free Public Transport. It makes climate sense and serves the people!”
Content Sourced from scoop.co.nz
Members of Hutt City’s grassroots council ticket, VAN – Valley Action Network, will be attending the Greater Wellington Regional Council meeting today, supporting a group of commuters, dubbed the “fair rise rebels” by the Dominion Post, protesting against train fare hikes on the Wairarapa Line.
“We’re going because commuters everywhere are facing a common problem”, says VAN spokesperson Michelle Ducat. “It’s the Wairarapa Line today, the Hutt Valley Line tomorrow.
“Last year, the government’s transport agency released a ‘farebox recovery’ plan to make passengers around the country pay a bigger share of the cost of public transport.
“Transport minister Steven Joyce pushed for the plan, to divert even more public money into building costly motorways. He has publicly singled out Hutt Valley rail commuters as another group who will have to pay extra.
“The Greater Wellington Regional Council made a submission opposing the plan and won important concessions, including the right for councils to set their own targets for how much of the cost should be borne by passengers.
“But under the new rules, says GWRC Design and Development Manager Brian Baxter, councils will still come under ’strong influence’ to make passengers pay up.
“The government already spends seven times as much on roads as it does on all other kinds of transport put together”, commented Michelle. “People know that this fuels ever-growing car use and traffic jams, more reliance on dwindling cheap oil and more climate-changing greenhouse gas emissions.
“Come July 1, it’s also forcing consumers to bear the cost of an Emissions Trading Scheme that’s been watered down and won’t stop climate change anyway.
“To fix the problems in a way that doesn’t shift the burden onto grassroots people, the country needs to move in the opposite direction, towards ideas like Free Public Transport.
“At the very least, local councils need to unite against this latest government farebox plan.
“Forty submissions were received on the farebox plan. Individuals, regional and city councils from around New Zealand spoke up against the government’s push to raise fares.
“Hutt City Council said nothing. This is just not good enough”, she said.
“Hutt residents deserve, and need a council that stands up for us, and for our environment.
“This is why VAN – Valley Action Network is standing for election to Hutt City Council in October.
“We’ll be pushing for Free Public Transport. It makes climate sense and serves the people!”
Content Sourced from scoop.co.nz
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Thank God, deepwater oil drilling is safe in New Zealand, but then we do have different laws of physics and chemistry down under...
Peter
•••
Anadarko presses ahead in NZ despite Gulf of Mexico mess
By Grant Bradley
NZ Herald Wednesday Jun 30, 2010
The Texas-based oil explorer that owns 25 per cent of the damaged well pouring crude into the Gulf of Mexico says its work programme in deep water off the New Zealand coast has not been affected.
Anadarko Petroleum must by late next month make a call on whether to drill off the South Island, targeting up to 500 million barrels of oil.
While protesters have focused on Petrobras, the Brazilian company which has up to five years to decide on drilling off the East Coast, drilling by Anadarko off Dunedin could start in summer.
South Island's Ngai Tahu said last night they hoped the Government would ensure proper procedure was followed and the utmost care taken to protect the environment when it came to oil exploration and oil drilling.
Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu general manager of tribal interests David O'Connell said the Ministry of Economic Development had in the past sought input on oil exploration around Stewart Island.
"It is our expectation that our views still have resonance today and we would not expect these places to be placed in jeopardy."
"The tragic events in the Gulf of Mexico...(have) not impacted on what the plans are in New Zealand"
When Anadarko announced it had formed a joint venture with Australia's Origin Energy in February, it said drilling could start early next year.
Anadarko spokesman John Christiansen said the company was excited about the potential in New Zealand.
"This is a great opportunity for us and it's one that we feel very blessed to have."
Anadarko has a non-operating stake in the Deepwater Horizon project but could face paying a share of the billions of dollars required to be spent in the Gulf of Mexico after the rig explosion on April 20 that killed 11 workers and has resulted in one of the world's worst oil spills.
Anadarko's debt rating has been downgraded, it is being sued by investors claiming it made false claims about drilling safety and could face an expensive legal battle with BP over liability for the clean-up.
Christiansen said the company would maintain its US$5.3 billion ($7.6 billion) to US$5.6 billion capital spending programme this year and because of the hold in drilling in the Gulf it was looking at concentrating on other areas.
"At this point in time the tragic events in the Gulf of Mexico have not impacted other areas of portfolio. We've looking at other places - it's not impacted on what the plans are in New Zealand."
Anadarko was still assessing a three-dimensional seismic survey recorded by Origin last year over the Carrack/Caravel prospect.
Christiansen said it was a little early to say whether the company would commit itself to drilling by August 21. If it does not, it must surrender the permit.
Anadarko is also part of a joint venture in the early stages of gathering and assessing a large prospect in deep water off the Taranaki coast.
Last weekend there were protests around the East Coast by groups alarmed at Petrobras drilling in deep water there.
While much of the drilling off Taranaki is in water 200m deep or less, deepwater drilling is classified as in water over 300m. The Canterbury Basin prospect was in water 1000m deep and the Deepwater Horizon rig was in water 1500m deep. Christiansen said Anadarko was well aware of the new concern about deepwater drilling.
Peter
•••
Anadarko presses ahead in NZ despite Gulf of Mexico mess
By Grant Bradley
NZ Herald Wednesday Jun 30, 2010
The Texas-based oil explorer that owns 25 per cent of the damaged well pouring crude into the Gulf of Mexico says its work programme in deep water off the New Zealand coast has not been affected.
Anadarko Petroleum must by late next month make a call on whether to drill off the South Island, targeting up to 500 million barrels of oil.
While protesters have focused on Petrobras, the Brazilian company which has up to five years to decide on drilling off the East Coast, drilling by Anadarko off Dunedin could start in summer.
South Island's Ngai Tahu said last night they hoped the Government would ensure proper procedure was followed and the utmost care taken to protect the environment when it came to oil exploration and oil drilling.
Te Runanga o Ngai Tahu general manager of tribal interests David O'Connell said the Ministry of Economic Development had in the past sought input on oil exploration around Stewart Island.
"It is our expectation that our views still have resonance today and we would not expect these places to be placed in jeopardy."
"The tragic events in the Gulf of Mexico...(have) not impacted on what the plans are in New Zealand"
When Anadarko announced it had formed a joint venture with Australia's Origin Energy in February, it said drilling could start early next year.
Anadarko spokesman John Christiansen said the company was excited about the potential in New Zealand.
"This is a great opportunity for us and it's one that we feel very blessed to have."
Anadarko has a non-operating stake in the Deepwater Horizon project but could face paying a share of the billions of dollars required to be spent in the Gulf of Mexico after the rig explosion on April 20 that killed 11 workers and has resulted in one of the world's worst oil spills.
Anadarko's debt rating has been downgraded, it is being sued by investors claiming it made false claims about drilling safety and could face an expensive legal battle with BP over liability for the clean-up.
Christiansen said the company would maintain its US$5.3 billion ($7.6 billion) to US$5.6 billion capital spending programme this year and because of the hold in drilling in the Gulf it was looking at concentrating on other areas.
"At this point in time the tragic events in the Gulf of Mexico have not impacted other areas of portfolio. We've looking at other places - it's not impacted on what the plans are in New Zealand."
Anadarko was still assessing a three-dimensional seismic survey recorded by Origin last year over the Carrack/Caravel prospect.
Christiansen said it was a little early to say whether the company would commit itself to drilling by August 21. If it does not, it must surrender the permit.
Anadarko is also part of a joint venture in the early stages of gathering and assessing a large prospect in deep water off the Taranaki coast.
Last weekend there were protests around the East Coast by groups alarmed at Petrobras drilling in deep water there.
While much of the drilling off Taranaki is in water 200m deep or less, deepwater drilling is classified as in water over 300m. The Canterbury Basin prospect was in water 1000m deep and the Deepwater Horizon rig was in water 1500m deep. Christiansen said Anadarko was well aware of the new concern about deepwater drilling.
Friday, June 18, 2010
We are everywhere!
The Free Public Transit Movement is Growing
It is catching on. People are starting to see that the private auto is a self-indulgent, anti-social killer. It kills everyday and now it threatens the biosphere itself.
There are many solutions being offered, but the most direct, simple, and effective is to make public transit fare-free.
Our advocates will be at the European Social Forum in July, and will be starting a nation-wide campaign in the UK in October. The campaign is stepping up in Scotland and getting a lot of attention in New Zealand and Australia. It has been strong for years in Brazil where there are MPL chapters in 8 cities. There are activists in Russia, Poland and India.
This movement is going to be huge. And that will happen sooner if you join.
Contact us at: farefreenz@clear.net.nz
It is catching on. People are starting to see that the private auto is a self-indulgent, anti-social killer. It kills everyday and now it threatens the biosphere itself.
There are many solutions being offered, but the most direct, simple, and effective is to make public transit fare-free.
Our advocates will be at the European Social Forum in July, and will be starting a nation-wide campaign in the UK in October. The campaign is stepping up in Scotland and getting a lot of attention in New Zealand and Australia. It has been strong for years in Brazil where there are MPL chapters in 8 cities. There are activists in Russia, Poland and India.
This movement is going to be huge. And that will happen sooner if you join.
Contact us at: farefreenz@clear.net.nz
Thursday, June 17, 2010
A message from Auckland
Jim Stanford
From Wednesday's Globe and Mail
Toronto’s main business lobby, the Board of Trade, recently called for the outsourcing of public transit services to private companies, part of their free advice to the next mayor on reducing the city’s deficit.
On one level, it’s an unremarkable proposal: just the latest in a chorus of business demands that governments fix their deficits by selling, contracting out or eliminating public services. But it caught my eye because I am residing temporarily in Auckland, New Zealand’s biggest city, where the transit system is the most fragmented, expensive and maddening I’ve ever used. And it’s 100-per-cent private. The gory details provide a caution for those who believe the private market always does things better.
In the 1980s and 1990s, New Zealand municipalities were forced by conservative national governments to sell off many public assets, including transit. They assumed free-market forces would cut costs and improve productivity. The reality has been the opposite. Indeed, since the 1980s, productivity has fallen far behind other OECD countries, yet costs and taxes remain relatively high. The government even had to buy back some of the privatized companies that failed entirely, such as Kiwi Rail and
Today, Auckland’s regional government contracts a dozen different private firms to supply bus, rail and ferry services. A complex network of interlocking ownership links many of these suppliers. So much for “competition.” The biggest, Infratil, is a $2-billion giant with a broad portfolio of privatized assets, including transit, electricity and airports. (That’ll surely catch the Board of Trade’s attention!)
This hodge-podge is all the worse because each company accepts only its own tickets, and not those offered by competitors. Since inter-company transfers are impossible, bus routes can be insanely circuitous. My daughter’s bus trip to school takes three long detours through different neighbourhoods, doubling what should be a five-kilometre route.
Tickets are expensive. Passengers pay according to how far they travel (and then pay again if they need a transfer). Trips of just a few stops cost as little as $1.70 – but another $1.70 is added each time the bus passes through another invisible “stage.” Travelling 40 kilometres from the city’s north to south costs $12.70 to $16.50 (depending which company is used) and takes two hours. A passenger travelling the same distance in Toronto (say, from Scarborough to Etobicoke) would pay $3 once, and require less than half the time.
City planners impose various pseudo-quantitative performance indicators on the contractors, such as sophisticated GPS systems to monitor on-time performance. But even this minimal nod to public accountability produces unintended consequences. Bus companies fear being fined for missing schedule targets, but are driven by the profit motive to ruthlessly minimize outlays on equipment and staff. The resulting pressure is intense on drivers (some of whom don’t even get paid overtime) to meet unrealistic timetables – a media exposé last year showed this often requires breaking the speed limit. Several times, we’ve watched an awaited bus race by without stopping, the driver shrugging helplessly and pointing at his watch.
That anecdote sums up perfectly the system’s irrationality. The top priority becomes ensuring that a private company reaches profit targets, not picking up people who need a ride.
Yet Aucklanders still pay for transit – three times over. Once through taxes – subsidies to private transit consume half of all property taxes collected by the regional government. Then again at the fare box. And finally a third time through inconvenience. No wonder Aucklanders take transit one-quarter as often as Torontonians.
So before you get carried away with enthusiasm for the inherent efficiency of the private sector, visit Auckland. It’s beautiful. But you’ll need to rent a car.
The Globe & Mail 16/06/2010
Sunday, June 13, 2010
March for Student Metrocards
Beyond Tech, Videos — By BTHSnews on June 12, 2010 at 6:45 pmBY ALFRED NG & ANDY MAI
VIDEO BY ALFRED NG
EDITING BY ALFRED NG
Whether you know it, time is running out on the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s (MTA) decision on New York City Student Metrocards. Later this month, the MTA will vote on whether or not to continue the Student Metrocard program. The decision is for students getting free public transportation now to have to pay half fare next school year and full fair the following year. A decision heavily criticized by parents, students, teachers, transit workers and MTA employees.
The New York City Student Union, on June 11th, organized a March for Student Metrocards across the Brooklyn Bridge. The March was led by Brooklyn Technical’s own Lucas Johnson and Henry Pines who spoke with BTHSnews.org about the effects of losing student Metrocards. Johnson did the math and predicted a expense of over a $1000 a year for each child to get to school. Pines criticized the MTA’s wasteful spending by stating only three years ago the MTA had a billion dollar budget surplus and today they are in the hole.
To show that students care, back in March, the NYC Student Union collected expired student Metrocards from students all over New York City with messages on the back of them explaining how the cuts would effect them. At a March public hearing, the NYC Student Union presented the student Metrocards to MTA officials pleading the students point of view. On June 11th, they used 3000 expired student Metrocards and strung them up on a line to walk the Brooklyn Bridge.
Both Johnson and Pines stressed the right to an education and taking away student Metrocards would be taking away that right. The march also landed on the same day as an organized student walkout for student Metrocards. Students left school early to protest student Metrocards at City Hall. The MTA is expected to make their decision on student Metrocards in late June before summer vacation.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Public transport: fare increases, or free travel?
Press Release – Greater Wellington Regional Councilor Paul Bruce
A report to the Greater Wellington Regional Council’s Transport and Access Committee next Tuesday is proposing that all fares be increased from 1 October 2010 to produce a 3% increase in fare revenue to balance increased costs.
(http://www.gw.govt.nz/committee-meetings-calendar/).
The Dom Post has reported; “Round-the-clock gridlock has been predicted if The Terrace and Mt Victoria tunnels are closed for five weeks to kickstart a $80 million project to remedy serious safety problems.”
Could we use this sense of crisis to achieve immediate improvements in public transport services and safe cycle and walk ways between Wellington CBD and its suburbs?
Greater Wellington Regional Councillor Paul Bruce said that coinciding public transport fare increases with the Mt Victoria tunnel safety upgrades is bad timing.
“If we are going to close off routes, we must provide some counter balancing measure to help people move freely about Wellington city. One of these measures could be moving the subsidy for free weekend public parking to zero inner city fares.” Mr Bruce said that many other cities provide zero fare services, including Auckland, Christchurch and Invercargill.
“Shifting some of the Wellington City Council business levy to cover bus fares in the central business district ties in with a move towards integrated fares, allowing people arriving from outer suburbs to proceed through to Courtenay Place without any extra cost. This will attract extra riders and lead to fewer cars in the inner city area, which in turn will improve traffic flow and air quality and thus ambience and … retail sales. Convenient public transport will also give an added pull to tourists.
“There are also health, social and environmental advantages to funding alternative modes of transport such as cycling, walking and public transport. Physical inactivity accounts for almost 10 percent of New Zealand’s 20 leading causes of death. It is a contributor to obesity and type 2 diabetes, which together cost the health system over $500 million per year. In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency is now promoting ‘car reduced’ communities. And the British government’s 2001 planning document says: ‘Development comprising jobs, shopping, leisure and services should not be designed and located on the assumption that the car will represent the only realistic means of access for the vast majority of people’.
“Wellington is an extreme case in terms of provision of car parks, with the highest number of parking spaces per job, according to figures collated by Kerry Wood. We outrank Christchurch and Auckland, and well known US cities, Phoenix, Denver, and Detroit.
“Wellington City Council “free” weekend car parks cost a lot in foregone revenue, in fact four times more than the inner city public transport weekend fare, and about half the total weekend bus revenue take. Free parking contributes to vehicle pollution and traffic snarl ups as cars search for parking spaces, and may actually diminish retail sales. In a time of diminishing resources, a subsidy for free parking isn’t the best plan.
“Improving Wellington’s transport network can happen with some creative solutions. Our transport network includes every bus, car, skateboard or pair of feet that people use to get around, each with different requirements, whether in use or not. Wellington’s compact size means space is at a premium downtown. What goes unnoticed are the ways in which we prioritise and even sponsor car use above every alternative. Private cars are the part of that network that take up the most space and energy, for the least return. Instead, providing some real alternatives, such as zero inner city public transport fares combined with safer cycling after the removal of some parking, enhances the village atmosphere that we all seek.”
Paul Bruce concluded that the closure of the Mt Victoria tunnel for safety upgrades should be seen as an opportunity to promote our public transport system. “Greater Wellington provides a free connecting bus service on the Kapiti Coast to connect with train services, and has found this to be a great success. What about moving towards zero weekend fares for Wellington city?”
Number of CBD parking spaces in 1996 per 1000 CBD jobs (figures collated by Kerry Wood) Wellington 1050 Christchurch 940 Auckland 650 Sourced:Phoenix 910 Denver 730 Detroit 710 Perth 630 Houston 610 Los Angeles 520 Portland 400 Melbourne 340 Brisbane 320 Sydney 220 Copenhagen 220 Zürich 140 London 120 New York 60
Zero fare public transport services
Auckland Free downtown bus loop, ‘City Circuit’ Christchurch Free downtown bus loop, ‘The Shuttle’ Invercargill Free downtown bus & free off peak buses Adelaide Free downtown tram route Sydney Free downtown city bus loop Melbourne Free downtown tram and bus loop Chapel Hill, USA Free area-wide bus services Hasselt, Belgium Free area-wide bus services
Links to research about the economic benefits of people-friendly streets: www.cabe.org.uk/publications/paved-with-gold http://www.vtpi.org/walkability.pdf
Bachels, M, Newman, P and Kenworthy, J (1999). Indicators of urban transport efficiency in New Zealand’s main cities. Perth: Murdoch University, ISBN 0 86905 669 7 Newman, P and Kenworthy, J (1999). Sustainability and cities — overcoming automobile dependence. ISBN 1 55963 660 2.
The High Cost of Free Parking, Donald Shoup estimates that off-street parking subsidies in the United States are worth at least $127 billion a year. www.earthpolicy.org/index.php?/book_bytes/2010/pb4ch06_ss1and8
Content Sourced from scoop.co.nzStudents Rally to Support Free Rides to School
New York Times. 11 June 2010By SHARON OTTERMAN
Todd Heisler/The New York Times Students from throughout New York City gather outside City Hall after they walked out of school on Friday to protest the mayor’s proposed cuts of the student MetroCard program.
About 600 students walked out of their high schools on Friday to rally outside City Hall in support of free student MetroCards, which the Metropolitan Transportation Authority has threatened to discontinue.
The students, from at least 18 high schools in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Manhattan, held up signs and chanted in support of the free rides, which it make possible for low-income students to choose their schools. Some travel for up to 90 minutes to attend classes.
“If it’s not free transportation, it’s not free education,” said Nazifa Mahbub, 16, a student at Long Island City High School who helped organize the protest. The crowd cheered as she addressed the gathering from a podium just outside the police barricades that were set up for the protest.
Though he was invited, Bill de Blasio, the city’s public advocate, declined to attend. His office said that although he supports the fight to preserve the free MetroCards, he did not endorse the idea of students leaving school to demonstrate. Five City Council members, including Robert Jackson, chairman of the Council’s Education Committee, showed up, as did representatives from the Transport Workers Union.
“I support the walkout because the students have organized themselves in order to lobby legislators and the city,” Mr. Jackson said. “So this is an organized protest, and that’s how you are supposed to do it.”
Many of the protesters said they faced little opposition when they walked out of school at the appointed hour of noon, but students from the Roosevelt Educational Campus in the Bronx said that the police, who work to stop truancy, were stationed outside the building and turned dozens back.
“We went out the side door,” said one of the Roosevelt students, Nancy Crespo, 14, who said she cut her history, art and English classes to attend the rally with two friends. She travels across the Bronx, from the Soundview section to Fordham Road, to get to school. (A police spokesman said that while there were officers stationed outside the school, they did not prevent students from leaving.)
The transportation authority, facing budget shortfalls, is scheduled to vote in the coming weeks on phasing out the free rides. The program has been financed in roughly equal parts by the city, the state and the transit agency.
