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Topics > Government and politics
"War on the motorist"
Is there a war on the motorist, or is this just a slogan to shore up the defence of car-dependent lifestyles?
If indeed attacks on the motorist add up to a war, it is pretty clear that the motoring protagonists are winning this war. Villages, towns and cities have all been successfully invaded. Almost 2,000 people are killed, and many thousands more are injured every year. The car has colonised shops, leisure and employment facilities, spreading them out into fewer and larger units, making them hard to reach on foot or by bus. The continuing spread of out-of-town facilities has diminished the number and strength of town centre facilities - a real war of attrition. Environmental initiatives such as the fuel escalator policy of the Labour Government can quickly be overturned by angry protests. In 2011, as fuel becomes more scarce and reducing carbon emissions is supposed to be an important Government concern what do we come with? A proposal to increase the maximum speed limit on motorways from 70 to 80mph.
Opposing armies of pedestrians, cyclists and public transport users have had some small victories. But with the car accounting for 63% of all trips and 78% of all distance travelled, the motoring protagonists still have the upper hand.
keywords
Traffic domination, war on the motorist, traffic issues
