Car Free Day? What Car Free Day?
You may have blinked and missed it, but 22nd September this year was European
Car Free Day. Birmingham City Council decided against taking part. Their arguments
were:
a) there was too much disruption to city traffic already (but they did close
Broad Street for ArtsFest the previous weekend)
b) it's a token gesture (it's not - it's an opportunity for people to realise either
how easy it is to get around without their car or what needs to be done to make
it easier) and
c) there's no business sympathy for the idea (this excuse is looking worn around
the edges: We have the wrong sort of city for kerbside rubbish collection, we
have the wrong sort of businesses for Car Free Day... sounds a little Railtrack
to me!)
We soon realised that three of Birmingham's twin cities - Frankfurt, Lyon and
Milan - were all taking part, and decided in conjunction with cycle campaign
group Push Bikes to publicise this in the general media as a way of encouraging
the city council to support it next year.
A quick phone call to Malte (Birmingham FOE's German Correspondent and former
newsletter editor) soon provided us with information on Frankfurt's positive attitude
to the day and a politely worded opinion from an official there on why Birmingham
was not taking part: 'England is still lagging behind several years in the environmental
debate' adding in a kindly tone, 'This may in part be due to it being an island
and some problems not becoming apparent as early as they did in Germany'. This
probably impressed upon the council the importance of acting in good time for
next year to avoid the horror of being publicly patronised by Germany!
To be fair to the city council, there was very little support from national government
for those who wished to take part in Car Free Day. Britain was the only government
in Europe to have refused to sign the Car Free Day charter. As a result, only
19 of our towns and cities took part, whereas Luxembourg - very approximately
the size of Shropshire - had 32 signed up. Two days before this year's Car Free
Day the government at last succumbed to public pressure and signed the charter.
Too late, of course, to support cities' participation for this year. Next year's
Car Free Day will fall on a Sunday - surely even Britain will be able to manage
this?
Car Free Day is popular in the cities that participate. In 1999, Paris closed
down some 40 miles of roads to motor traffic. 44% of people said they wanted
a car free day every week.
The press release was eagerly taken up by the media. Coverage also focused on
that little section of Hurst Street which was part of a cycle route for the National
Cycle Network launch in June last year, and then closed to cycles two months
later - "for safety reasons". The stretch is now used for on-street parking.
Campaigning on car use in Birmingham always brings with it an interminable de9je0
vu and the sensation of trying to dig a hole in a brick wall with a teaspoon.
Air quality. Road deaths. Land wastage. Noise pollution. Personal health. But
one of the problems often overlooked by our car-loving opponents is something
that recent and future events internationally may well be bringing home to us:
that our over-dependence on oil actually forms a threat to our security as a
nation. We are weakened by the inability of our infrastructure to operate when
oil supplies are disrupted. Even those for whom sustainability means guaranteed
share profits for a couple of years can understand this one, and must therefore
acknowledge the necessity of promoting and strengthening the alternatives.
Now's the time to write to the council's transportation department asking for Birmingham
to take part in Car Free Day next year. The day (even if it is a Sunday!) could
be used as an effective consultation exercise wherein people who usually travel
by car can tell the city council what problems they faced the day they left their
car at home, and where improvements are needed. Some of them might be pleasantly
surprised; the rest will be helping us to solve the problem. The tired old excuse
of "I'm not getting out of my car until there are decent alternatives" could therefore
be laid to rest.
Karen Leach