Monthly Archives: February 2012

Fuel tax fraud?

Apparently the Chancellor has ruled out cutting fuel tax, which as we know adds over 60% to the cost of fuel. Tax cuts could, of course, be funded by traffic system reform. Maybe my arguments haven’t reached the Chancellor’s ears. Or … Continue reading

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Funding tax cuts

Shadow Chancellor, Ed Balls, wants to raise the tax threshold. Don’t we all? Balls says it can be funded by cutting VAT to raise the £12bn needed. The government rubbished the proposal. But they are just as myopic in failing … Continue reading

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Public service? Pull the other one

In devising methods of repressing hypothetical (minority) misbehaviour on our roads, the traffic control net is spread wide. Like the wrong fish caught in a trawler’s net, good people are ensnared and brought to their knees (you, me and Chris … Continue reading

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Calls for 5mph limit in Exhibition Road

On 13 Feb 2012, in shared space Exhibition Rd, a man on foot was hit by a lorry (here). Thankfully he was not badly hurt. It is no reason to ditch shared space, but it backs my view that streetscape redesign is not … Continue reading

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Say mould (same old)

On Today today, George Osborne said there is no easy way out of our debt problems. But as friends of this campaign will know, he’s missing something big. Ed Balls is right that deficit reduction is best achieved by growth, but … Continue reading

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Red light Ken (Houdini?)

In the Evening Standard last week, Ken Livingstone’s No.2, Val Shawcross, was quoted as saying, “You’re elected to represent the public interest and that’s what you do.” In what way was Livingstone acting in the public interest when, during his … Continue reading

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Red light Ken (and my road rage)

Ken Livingstone, who during his reign added 1200 sets of traffic lights to London streets, now “pledges to install traffic lights to give cyclists a five second head start,” reports The Times. Boris too “is considering early green lights,” chirps … Continue reading

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Equality in a car park? Pull the other one!

Often cited as places where drivers behave considerately are car parks, because they are not part of the regulated road network. In a Tesco par cark yesterday, when I was on foot and asserted my equal right to the road space, I … Continue reading

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Smacking children = disabling drivers

On the subject of smacking on Any Questions, the excellent Steve Jones said he was hit a lot at school, and that smackers often smacked to show who was in charge, which created nothing but resentment at injustice. There is a … Continue reading

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A question of justice

If Chris Huhne’s alleged act perverts the course of justice, does non-discretionary traffic regulation pervert the cause of justice?

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