ajsadauskas

So the RTA's own modelling showed the Rozelle Interchange would be a traffic disaster—but generating more toll road trips for Transurban was more important.

"The [NSW Roads and Traffic Authority] finalised the first business case for the WestConnex tunnel project in June 2013, with the help of road designers from around the world.

"[Paul Forward, a former CEO of the RTA] said the initial concept did not include the Rozelle Interchange.

...

"In 2014, an expert review group was formed to assess these plans.

"Mr Forward said it was at this point that TfNSW bureaucrats began to question the connectivity provided by the design.

"The RTA's former director of traffic Chris Ford told the inquiry that 15 alternative designs were modelled.

"Mr Ford said the modelling found that another motorway leading to the Anzac Bridge would cause congestion.

"'The issues that we see today were very clearly established in the modelling in 2014,' he said.

"In November 2015, after Mr Forward and Mr Ford were dismissed, TfNSW updated the WestConnex business case to include the tunnel to the Anzac Bridge, despite the congestion concerns raised by the modelling.

"In 2016, Transport for NSW updated the business case a second time ... creating a tunnel linking the Iron Cove Bridge to the Anzac Bridge."

...

"In 2018, the NSW government sold its 51 per cent stake in the Sydney Motorway Corporation, the body responsible for operating WestConnex, to Transurban for $9 billion.

"Mr Forward said the final design would generate a larger number of toll trips than previous options."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-05-03/sydney-western-harbour-tunnel-warringah-freeway-traffic-disaster/103801818

@fuck_cars #roads #cars #urbanism #nswpol #sydney #WestConnex #UrbanPlanning #transport

"It's going to be a bloody disaster": Tell me again about how the second road tunnel under Sydney Harbour won't make congestion worse?

"Civil engineer Les Wielinga, a former CEO at the now-defunct Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA), made the fiery comments at a NSW parliamentary inquiry into the bungled Rozelle Interchange.

"The Western Harbour Tunnel, which is under construction, will allow drivers travelling between the inner west and the North Shore to bypass the CBD.

"Entries and exits to the tunnel will lie at the Ernest Street interchange in Cammeray and near the Falcon Street interchange at North Sydney.

"'It's going to be a bloody disaster,' Mr Wielinga told the upper house committee on Friday.

"Paul Forward, another former CEO of the RTA, told the inquiry he was concerned about the project's design.

"'You've now got three motorways coming out into this short area, and whilst I would recognise there are some exit points, some off-ramps, those motorways are now all going into the Lane Cove Tunnel,' he said.

"'A large number of lanes are going into two lanes at the Lane Cove Tunnel. Sounds familiar?'"

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-05-03/sydney-western-harbour-tunnel-warringah-freeway-traffic-disaster/103801818

@fuck_cars #sydney #roads #planning #UrbanPlanning

How to remove a freeway...

The decision to build freeways instead of rail in the post-war years, along with the low-rise single-zoned suburbs it promoted, has been an absolute planning disaster.

But the mistake can be fixed, and freeways can be removed.

City Beautiful's Dave Amos @citybeautiful has an interesting look at some of America's endangered freeways, and how communities can get them removed:

https://youtu.be/XOpjDSUmPtU?si=F7SHc-uDLJkKd9Gu

@fuck_cars #freeways #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #cars

Disgraceful conduct by Pandemonium Festival promoter Andrew McManus.

He has apparently taken to Facebook to threaten ticketholders who have asked for a refund with violence.

This as the wheels have almost completely fallen off his Pandemonium Festival: https://www.smh.com.au/culture/music/what-s-going-on-punters-left-hanging-over-controversial-rock-festival-20240322-p5fehb.html

#music @melbourne #concerts #rock #business #capitalism #melbourne #festival #festivals #pandemonium #business #tickets #australia

Alessia Cara is back in the studio!

She just posted the following on Insta: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5Th4IMutTY/?igsh=MTc4MmM1YmI2Ng==

Alessia's a very talented and frankly underrated young singer-songwriter. Hopefully we see a new album from her soon!

#AlessiaCara #Alessia #Music #PopMusic #Pop @popheads

Not again! BoM issues Flood warning for Qld and NSW.

"A major rain event will engulf most of eastern Australia during the next 48 hours, prompting the Bureau of Meteorology to issue flood watches from southern Queensland to the NSW South Coast.

"Greater Sydney could be soaked by up to 200mm from late Thursday to early Saturday, potentially leading to major flooding along the Hawkesbury-Nepean River, while Brisbane and Canberra also face the prospect of heavy rain."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-04/torrential-rain-triggers-flood-watch-for-sydney/103665240

@sydney #sydney #NSW #Australia #ClimateChange #weather #floods

General rule of thumb: Low gross emissions are better than net zero or net negative emissions.

Especially when those low gross emissions are across scope one (on premises), two (off-site energy), and three (supply chain).

Doubly so if those net zero/negative emissions are due to carbon offsets.

#ClimateChange #Climate #Environment @green #GlobalWarming #CarbonEsmissions #NetZero

The tragic story of Irene Cara: Ripped off by her label, blacklisted, abandoned by Hollywood... and paid less than $200 for "What a Feeling"

Cara, who passed away in 2022, was an incredibly talented singer and actress.

In 1983, her song "What a Feeling" was number one on the Billboard chart for six weeks.

Yet by 1987, her album was scrapped by her label, amidst a lengthy legal battle for unpaid royalties.

She eventually won the lawsuit, being awarded $1.3 million in unpaid royalties, but was blacklisted by both the record and film industries:

https://youtu.be/E2bBLqGNxu0?si=dfTWd99ixSLdbh9b

@popheads #popmusic #music #IreneCara

The saga of Waverley Park — Melbourne's car-dependent suburban AFL stadium with a planned seated capacity of over 150,000 (not a typo!)

A really good run down by @philip on the plans by the AFL (and its predecessor, the VFL) to build the world's largest stadium in outer-suburban Melbourne.

Unfortunately, a planned railway line past the stadium to Rowville was never built. That meant a massive 25,000-spot car park as the only real means to get there.

While most of it has been demolished and redeveloped for housing, the oval itself still used by Hawthorn Football Club as a training and administration centre.

https://youtu.be/LvvLwiRCx4s?si=x2QvxepgPtBtJZfx

@fuck_cars #AFL #Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #cars #stadium #stadia #Melbourne #sport #footy #football #stadiums #history #Victoria #VicPol #Australia #planning #Hawthorn #AusPol #CarBrain

So WestConnex was totally going to solve traffic in Sydney by adding more lanes for cars. Just a few teething problems on the Rozelle Interchange and it'll all clear up, they said.

I wonder how it's going?

"Gladesville and Drummoyne locals say gridlock is worsening in their suburbs following changes to improve traffic flow through the notorious Rozelle Interchange, with drivers using local streets as “rat runs” to dodge congestion."

Oh dear...

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/rozelle-interchange-fix-has-created-rat-runs-in-the-suburbs-20240319-p5fdim.html

#roads #cars #fuckcars #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #traffic #cities #congestion #car @fuck_cars

Sydney has opened up consultation on a strategy to reduce car traffic and make the city more walkable

"Driving in central Sydney will become harder under a plan to make the city more comfortable for pedestrians.

"The City of Sydney wants to narrow roads for wider footpaths and push for lower speed limits to discourage drivers from the CBD and transform Sydney into a walkable city.

"The council will also install more pedestrian crossings and prioritise people over cars... five times more pedestrians than motorists on the average street, yet just 40 per cent of road space is allocated to footpaths."

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/greener-safer-calmer-the-plan-to-discourage-drivers-from-central-sydney-20240312-p5fbr7.html

Some key points of the strategy are:

We will ensure that there is sufficient space for people to walk.

We will improve connectivity for people walking by ensuring there are frequent street crossings that give people priority and that align with people’s walking routes.

We will ensure that footpaths and crossings are accessible so that everyone can use them.

We will plan our city based on 10-minute neighbourhoods so that people are able to meet their daily needs easily by walking.

We will make it safer for people to walk by reducing vehicle speeds.

We will reduce traffic volumes on surface streets and manage through-traffic in residential neighbourhood streets to improve both safety and experience for people walking.

We will work to make all people feel safer while walking around our city.

We will work to improve compliance with road rules, especially the lesser-known rules that benefit people walking.

We will make our streets and public spaces comfortable and inviting by ensuring that they
are green and cool.

We will make sure that there are frequent opportunities for people to stop and rest, use the toilet or have a drink of water.

We will make our city more pleasant to walk in by reducing noise and air pollution from
traffic.

We will make all streets interesting to walk along by ensuring that built form has active, permeable frontages that invite engagement and curiosity.

We will use design, activations and installations to create neighbourhood-based community and encourage people to interact with their streets.

Full details here: https://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/policy-planning-changes/your-feedback-walking-strategy-action-plan#strategy

Unfortunately, the car-brained leader of the local business lobby isn't on board:

"Business Sydney executive director Paul Nicolaou welcomed efforts to make the city pedestrian-friendly... But Nicolaou said it was difficult to see how making Sydney a predominantly walking city would benefit businesses such as retailers."

(Worth repeating that 80% of people on an average city street are pedestrians, so it already is a predominantly walking city.)

Anyway, if you think the plan's a good idea, make sure you let the Sydney City Council know by emailing [email protected]

#urbanism #UrbanPlanning #Sydney @fuck_cars #walking #walk #walkability #nswpol #auspol #nsw #planning #cities #UrbanGreening #city #cities #australia

Why Boeing needs to be run by engineers and not bean counters

Really insightful video about what has gone wrong.

Among the points Casey makes is that Boeing imported Jack Welch's GE management culture.

This has included a focus on short-term profits over engineering, and practises such as stack ranking.

Boeing, as a major defence contractor and (direct and indirect) employer, is too big to fail.

And Casey argues that either the Board or, if they're unwilling, the US government, needs to clear out the senior management and introduce an engineer-led management team:

https://youtu.be/d3u7F256wKM?si=1D5MNSQ2EyLvRmL-

#Boeing #engineer #engineering @engineering #capitalism #business #finance #politics