Rolf: It was thought in the mid 90’s that traffic in Guernsey had reached saturation point. Then we had 40,000 cars registered. A mere 20 years later and we now have more than double that at almost 87,000. Granted that number also includes some cars that are no longer on the roads but even bearing that in mind, it is still an unbelievable and unsustainable increase. Our population (sadly) still seems to be increasing year on year and while that continues, we can expect traffic volumes to keep pace unless we do something about it. Car dependency is not a ‘fact of life’- it is a choice and it does not ‘have’ to be a by-product of a wealthy society- the Netherlands are also a wealthy society and in the 1970’s made a conscience decision to develop a transport strategy that encouraged everyone to use a variety of transport options so reversing their car dependent culture. No reason why we can’t do the same. There are many reasons why it would be stupid for us to continue down this blind alley- the recent report from N.I.C.E. being a pretty powerful one on its own. I totally agree that the car will always be a part of our transport structure but it needs to be managed in such a manner that the alternative transport options of walking, cycling and public transport are given far more weight and for that to happen we need to reduce the numbers of cars on the road. Additional car-parking will not do that and therefore shows a lack of foresight.
Voice For Victims
Voice for Victims is a campaign aimed at promoting the rights of those affected by child sexual abuse.
