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The rest of the world is building subways like crazy. The U.S. has pretty much given up
(www.fastcompany.com)
this post was submitted on 06 Aug 2024
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Solarpunk Urbanism
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A community to discuss solarpunk and other new and alternative urbanisms that seek to break away from our currently ecologically destructive urbanisms.
- Henri Lefebvre, The Right to the City — In brief, the right to the city is the right to the production of a city. The labor of a worker is the source of most of the value of a commodity that is expropriated by the owner. The worker, therefore, has a right to benefit from that value denied to them. In the same way, the urban citizen produces and reproduces the city through their own daily actions. However, the the city is expropriated from the urbanite by the rich and the state. The right to the city is therefore the right to appropriate the city by and for those who make and remake it.
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In Brisbane, Australia, we're buying funny-looking buses with wheel covers and calling it a "metro".
There are lots of reasons trains would be better, but they come down to capacity and if you are building something dedicated tracks are similar price for more capacity. Brisbane has proven that done well the bus works very well and you don't need trains until you need high capacity.
"Metro" literally can't run on regular roads. The specialised buses are too big to fit in normal lanes. It can only run on dedicated BRT routes. i.e., dedicated tracks.
But more so I'm just angry at the misleading marketing. It's an ok project with the wrong name. And other more substantial problems like already decreasing the promised frequency, giving up on level boarding and off-vehicle tap-ons. But it was the name that I was trying to highlight in my earlier comment.
Seriously? We are using the same model in European cities, even small ones, without issues in mixed traffic.
Yup. According to these specs the Metro buses are 2,550 mm wide. The AustRoad guidelines specify "the legal width limit of commercial vehicles is 2.5 m". The Metro buses had to receive special exemptions to be approved for use on the separated BRT routes they're going to be running on, and for their more limited testing/promotional phase around the city elsewhere prior to the actual commencement of service (which should be coming in October).
Very interesting guidelines. I understand we need them. But, as a European where public transport may be more prominent, it surprises me that the government doesn't change the guidelines to accommodate them.