Martin Cassini's Blog Posts Tagged 'equality' (6)

The RAC has published a report about traffic lights. Among their "ideas" is amber-flashing lights off-peak, "so drivers can cross with caution". As mentioned before, this exposes the shocking assumption that with lights, we don’t need to exercise caution; all we need to do is obey the system, which usurps our judgement and turns us into unthinking robots. Obviously amber-flashing…

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Never expected to quote Meg Ryan in relation to traffic system reform, but her comment about the value of "mindfulness meditation" (today's Observer) is apt: "by simply refocusing our awareness, we reshape our experience." The awareness that needs refocusing on the road is from priority to equality, which will level the playing field and allow all road-users to interact sociably and safely. Article…

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Some councils are wising up to ideas of traffic deregulation, which until recently they resisted tooth and nail. Yes, a road revolution is in the air. But most councils still miss the wider context, so, for the time being, we are still required to conform to the technocrat’s idea of how we should act. Under the current system of PRIORITY, we must continue to live (and die) by rules that derive from railway engineering.…

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The idea of questioning traffic lights is a still surprise to some people. Yet traffic lights are only the most visible symptom of a dysfunctional system. The need for reform goes a lot deeper. Piece here.

Priority based on status of road is discriminatory. It supports inequality. By contrast, filter in turn (FiT) – based on time of arrival – expresses equal status, equal rights, equal responsibility, equal opportunity. The dysfunctional rules of the road defy civilised values. They have an unseen hand in countless "accidents", yet they are supported by the law of the land.

Another specious public-funded road safety ad can be seen here (back tab to return). What gets me is the way the system puts the onus on children to beware motorists, when it could and should be the other way round. The first step towards making Roads FiT for People is to replace priority based on status of road, which generates hostility, with equality based on time of arrival, which levels the playing-field and stimulates… Continue