Links - 26th April 2020 (1) (Transport)

How to end traffic - "It can be easier to imagine European cities car-free because for so much of their histories—whether they are 300 or 3,000 years old—they were... While American cities can seem new when compared to European counterparts, every major U.S. city—with the exception of Las Vegas—was founded before the introduction of the automobile... urban planning in America is rooted in pre-car, mostly European models... In many American communities, like Austin or Atlanta, cars are so much the default that there’s little or no sidewalk at all... bikes, pedestrians, and cars intermingle without barriers. In the Netherlands and Belgium, this is frequently accomplished by having cars share the same space—at the same grade—with the pedestrians and bikers that often greatly outnumber autos. Visiting Haarlem, the city just outside Amsterdam that’s famous as the home of painter Frans Hals and for lending its name to the neighborhood in New York City, we found this type of street sharing is the norm. In the city’s core there are no sidewalks at all: pedestrians, bikes, and cars simply share the street. Forced to drive at safe speeds, cars and trucks become the exception for getting around, used for deliveries and hauling cargo, not shuttling single individuals—unlike in the United States, where “74 percent of [commuting car] trips are individuals driving alone.”... Of course, limiting private vehicular traffic only works in tandem with robust transit options. While smaller city centers may be completely walkable, any ZTL in a larger American city would require transportation that’s reliable, frequent, and safe.  New Yorkers frustrated by subway delays and repair schedules might scoff in disbelief, but Manhattan, in particular, is home to America’s best transit system... In New York’s Financial District—the subject of a comprehensive “Make Way for Lower Manhattan Plan” that provides a framework to begin ridding the area of cars—is served by free shuttles, three city bus lines, and nearly every subway.  The problem comes in smaller urban areas where transit has lagged behind"

New York becomes first city in US to approve congestion pricing - "The plan was approved by the state legislature early on Monday morning as part of the state budget, after a crisis in the city’s subways brought to a head a decade-long fight over charging motorists in Manhattan.Under the plan backed by Governor Andrew Cuomo, drivers will have to pay tolls to enter Manhattan south of 60th Street... “We have a signal system that dates to the 1930s. We have subway cars that date to the 60s. We have a subway system where a scant minority of stations are accessible to riders in wheelchairs and to people with strollers. The money will go a long way toward starting the work and delivering projects that we need done.”... Other US cities may look to New York’s plan for a congestion solution, but Mitchell Moss, the head of the Rudin Center for Transportation at New York University, said the city’s situation is unique.“There is nothing as dense as Manhattan”"

Should Canada charge drivers to use roads during rush hour? - "Stockholm initially introduced it as a pilot program because the majority of people opposed it. Seven months later, that same majority voted in a referendum to make it permanent.“There’s something about really experiencing those benefits that’s different than just being told about those benefits”"
Maybe Singaporeans don't like ERP because they're already paying so much for cars

Kansas City is making its bus system fare-free. Will other cities do the same? - ""Big-city systems are already crowded at least during the peak period and simply wouldn’t have the capacity to handle all the riders that free fares would attract"... the top priority for most transit riders is how frequent and reliable a system is, not its price... a majority of Kansas City’s bus lines run every 30 to 60 minutes, which can make bus connections difficult."

Transit and the “D” Word - "To pay off, transit investments need to meet a minimum density threshold."

Population density in Toronto significantly less compared to other major cities: Fraser Institute - "cities in Canada are significantly less dense than other major cities around the world.The study lists population densities of 30 cities in high income and developed countries, and Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto come 13th, 16th and 19th on the list, respectively... because Canadian cities are less dense, places like Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver can likely accommodate more housing supply. The population density in New York City is more than double Toronto’s, with 10,935 people per square kilometre."

The fast and the furious: Research shows that owners of high-status cars are on a collision course with traffic | University of Helsinki - "the drivers of expensive cars are more likely to break traffic regulations. This phenomenon has been explained with the common assumption that wealth has a corrupting effect on people, resulting, for example, in high-status consumption and unethical behaviour in various situations.Lönnqvist approached the question from a different angle by asking whether specific types of people are drawn to high-status cars regardless of their financial assets and also have a tendency to break traffic laws... self-centred men who are argumentative, stubborn, disagreeable and unempathetic are much more likely to own a high-status car such as an Audi, BMW or Mercedes.“These personality traits explain the desire to own high-status products, and the same traits also explain why such people break traffic regulations more frequently than others”... "those whose personality was deemed more disagreeable were more drawn to high-status cars. These are people who often see themselves as superior and are keen to display this to others"... One of the more unexpected results was that another personality type is also drawn to high-status cars: the conscientious. People with this type of personality are, as a rule, respectable, ambitious, reliable and well-organised. They take care of themselves and their health and often perform well at work.“The link is presumably explained by the importance they attach to high quality"