Killer roads prevent fossil fuel free mobility

"...Most transport funding goes towards building wider and longer roads “embedding car dependency” – which leads to more driving and ultimately more congestion."

"Thirty-five cyclists were killed on Australia’s roads last year, slightly down on the 10-year average of 38.5. About half of those were aged 40 to 64, and most were men, according to the Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare statistics show 14,796 bike riders were hospitalised in 2021-22."

No roads without cycle paths and footpaths!

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2023/sep/01/covid-cycling-boom-has-ended-with-just-one-third-of-australians-riding-in-2023
#Bellingen #NSW #roads #speed #CarDependency #infrastructure #GlenifferRoad #NorthBankRoad #RosesRoad #cycling #walkability #climate #PublicHealth #mobility #MobilityDesign

Bellingen - Roads to nowhere, Pt.1/2

Scenic Bellingen has been in a road widening frenzy to accommodate industrial logging and clear felling operations to 'get the stuff out of here'. For nearly a year heavy fossil fuel machinery has been making the roads (Roses Road, Gleniffer Road, North Bank Road) fit for an extractivist industry, ignoring residents and biodiverse habitats along the cemented arteries.

In town gigantic haulage trucks (2 B-double trucks) shoot through the bottleneck of the main cafe and shopping district ruining the ambience.

The government, road building and timber extraction nexus robs residents of their homes, eradicates biodiversity habitats and pumps up emissions for all.

Wildlife, residents and tourists are now confronted with a dangerous network of roads where they risk their lives and endure permanent pollution.

To prioritise damaging industries and provide pathways only for them is putting the community at risk.

People want a sustainable environment, they would like to move about in safety without carbon emissions.

Where is the infrastructure for the future?

"Two-thirds of people want more transport funding to go into walking, cycling and public transport....

Bellingen - roads to nowhere pt.2/2
https://mastodon.au/@Bellingen/110986658766673505
#Walking #cycling #walkability #FootTraffic #Bellingen #RosesRoad #GlenifferRoad #NorthBankRoad #roads #sprawl #infrastructure #CarDependency #FossilFuel #traffic #congestion #speed #pollution #LoggingIndustry #extractivism #BellingenLogging #climate #biodiversity

Bellingen - Roads to nowhere pt.2

"Two-thirds of people want more transport funding to go into walking, cycling and public transport.

Most of our transport funding goes into building wider and longer roads, embedding car dependency. However, making it easier to drive leads to more driving and ultimately more congestion, an effect known as induced demand.

For people to walk and cycle, we need to provide so-called healthy streets: not too noisy, easy to cross, with clean air and where people feel safe.

Default 30km/h speed limits in built-up areas are an immediate low-cost way to increase road safety.

By prioritising walking and cycling for short trips, Australia can reduce the national combined cost of $67 billion a year of traffic injuries and deaths, traffic congestion, air pollution and physical inactivity. "

https://theconversation.com/fewer-of-us-are-cycling-heres-how-we-can-reverse-the-decline-212260

https://www.betterstreets.org.au/
Better Streets, a community-led coalition, People-friendly streets and Climate-friendly streets.

Bellingen - roads to nowhere, Pt.1
https://mastodon.au/@Bellingen/110986666356192102
#Walking #cycling #walkability #FootTraffic #LowFootprint #transit #Bellingen #RosesRoad #GlenifferRoad #NorthBankRoad #roads #sprawl #CarDependency #FossilFuel #traffic #congestion #speed #pollution #LoggingIndustry #BellingenLogging

On the Highway to Climate Hell
The world's infrastructure was built for a climate that no longer exists.
“We have entire cities and transportation hubs that were all built for climate that no longer exists...unprepared for the climate risks we face today."
https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/08/11/climate-change-critical-infrastructure-heat-flood-energy-transportation-housing/

Recent road 'upgrades' in #Bellingen had logging and tourist supply chains in mind. All roads were extended with a lot of deforestation, heavy machinery using fossil fuels and cement. A climate and biodiversity disaster. None provide for a walking, cycling or e-mobility infrastructure.

#Bellingen #roads #GlenifferRoad #NorthBankRoad #RosesRd #FossilFuel #logging #BellingenLogging #infrastructure #so50s #climate

Redesigning roads and intersections to put humans first – The Bellingen case

Bellingen just 'upgraded' Gleniffer Road (The $5.2M “gate way to the Promised Land”) and North Bank Road. Both put fossil fuel vehicles first and forgot emission free mobility for people.
But cyclists and foot traffic deserve the same direct routes that motorists have. Elsewhere they rethink transport planning to promote safer cycling and walking options. Another missed opportunity to put Bellingen on the map for pollution free country cruising.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-29/pushing-bikes-in-the-car-capital/102659800
#Bellingen #PromisedLand #traffic #GlenifferRoad #WaterfallWay #NorthBankRoad #Roads #RoadUpgrades #FossilFuel #Infrastructure #tourism #network #so50s #cars #addiction #Ebikes #cycling #CyclePaths #Climate

Killer roads

Where is the infrastructure where one does not have to be propelled by fossil fuel at high speed?
Each (new) road should have a shady and separated cycling and walking infrastructure factored in.
Wildlife crossings all along the way.

Australia’s road toll continues to rise with 37 additional people killed in 'accidents' compared to the previous 12 months, despite a nationwide target to halve road deaths by 2030.

“The rising road toll came despite a National Road Safety Action Plan target to halve deaths by 2030 and cut serious transport injuries by 30%. In 2023, Australia is unable to adequately quantify the extent of road trauma, or the effectiveness of interventions being deployed to reduce it.”

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jul/23/australias-road-toll-continues-to-rise-with-most-states-falling-behind-safety-goals

#FatalAccidents #RoadToll #RoadDeaths #RoadTrauma #IntegralAccident #speed #RoadSafety #VisionZero #failure #wildlife #roadkill #NorthBankRoad #so50s #NSW #climate #FossilFuel #mobility #carnage #infrastructure #risks #sacrifice

Not just #Bellingen, but elsewhere too:
"Nobody wants heavy vehicles rumbling up the middle of the main street..”

"The #MainStreet is a designated heavy transport corridor, has the most foot traffic and is a tourist icon. Many large trucks travelling through the main street...The trucks have got much bigger and much more numerous, but in addition to the #trucks there are a lot of commuters now from the new #developments”

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-21/independent-report-into-hahndorf-traffic-plan/102371360
#FootTraffic #FossilFuel #Traffic #ObstructionOfPublicSpaces #Sprawl #NorthBankRoad #TourismTown #Congestion #Logjams #HydeStreet