April 2010 Blog Posts (6)

Just back (on foot) from Elephant & Castle. Instead of using the underpasses, I crossed the roads that fan out from the roundabout. There were plenty of gaps in traffic, and it would be fine if it weren't for some people's intolerance born of the mean-spirited rules of the road. I'd already more or less…

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From Andrew O'Hagan's 4* review of The Infidel in The Standard: "The comedy is thrilling on several fronts - the joy of reason unseating prejudice; the smile of anarchy spreading mayhem into dogma; the thrill of haphazard intelligence taking a stand against well-organised…

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Occasionally the idea of left turn on red is mooted (like right turn on red in the US). It means freedom to filter left, even if the red is against you. A tiny step in the right direction, I've always thought, but ultimately a lame idea. Why can't we…

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Have I been pussyfooting around for too long with hypotheses? Over the last two years, in association with a traffic engineer, I've been pitching lights v no-lights trials to "test the hypothesis" (prove the point) that self-controlled, unregulated traffic flow could bring transformational gains in efficiency, safety, road-user interaction, air quality and quality of life. The first switch-off, in Portishead, has gone permanent after congestion disappeared with no loss of pedestrian safety.… Continue

I've been saying that traffic lights are an unnecessary evil. Second thoughts. They are worse than unnecessary. They cause congestion by denying infinite filtering opportunities. They heighten danger by taking our eyes off the road and stimulating inappropriate speed. They heighten stress and mess with our minds by dictating our behaviour against our better judgement. They incubate hostility by preventing empathy and fellow feeling. They cost the earth to install and run, causing damage to the… Continue

Letter received from Lambeth: "Thank you for your letter in which you made informal representations about the above Penalty Charge Notice (PCN). I would like to confirm that the PCN has been cancelled. No consideration has been given and no judgement has been made with regard to the merits or otherwise of the alleged…

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