Traffic: no turning back

Why are we still unable to accept that our transportation model is unsustainable? The age of the automobile is over and individual car ownership no longer possible. Decades of road building and reliance on traditional public transport have left growing numbers of cities unable to meet the transport needs of their residents.

Angry at traffic jams, we demand solutions, when the reality is that we are the problem: there is no more room on our roads to drive or to park. The number of cities in which traffic and parking restrictions are introduced is growing steadily: tolls, camera systems, restrictions depending on pollution levels, elimination of parking space, etc.

No government is going to preclude voters from driving. But at the same time, governments are trying to discourage it in the most aggressive way possible. Singapore, a city where owning a car now makes little sense and is extremely expensive, has already announced that it will prevent the registration of more vehicles from February 2018. We must offer people an ever wider range of transport solutions, and ensure that, as the former mayor of Bogotá, Enrique Peñalosa, has said, development is not measured by the poor having a car, but the rich wanting to use public transport.

The solution does not mean building more roads, which only encourages us to use our cars even more. The solution is to discourage us from using our cars. Awareness of the problem is the first step to solving it. Technology has any number of solutions, but everything must start from awareness of the problem. Pollution has become one of the factors that is causing more traffic restrictions in many cities, restrictions that the majority of the population usually accept as soon as they look at the sky. Next is to encourage efficient use of vehicles. Alternatives such as Cabify, Uber, Car2go, Emov, etc. are usually criticized because they keep vehicles on the road, but they encourage us to consider leaving our cars at home by providing additional alternatives, and they represent a higher level of efficiency. Decades of restrictive systems based on taxi licenses have shown that they are not the solution to the problem.

The autonomous vehicle, which will be available in some cities as of the beginning of next year, is not a solution if it merely leads to continued private ownership, thus clogging up our roads again, and must instead be rented on as as-needs basis through commercial fleets. We will have apps to optimize the capacity of such vehicles to encourage more efficient use. There will come a time when the use of that private vehicle will be seen not only as selfish or inefficient, but as unsafe, expensive and unnecessary. This will initially require restrictions, and we will need to develop awareness that such restrictions are inherently good and necessary to change our mindset, whatever the short-term setbacks.

In addition, the increase of e-commerce and efficient logistics, flexible working hours and working from home will reduce traffic. What is the role of the state here? To serve as platforms for the development of new initiatives. But this will not be enough: we need to move toward public and private alternatives of all kinds, whether they are fleets of shared vehicles, autonomous, electric or flying: anything goes.

How can we convince people that the car’s days are numbered, and that new solutions are required to our problems? It’s a difficult task, but one that I take every opportunity to help with through my public appearances and teaching to. Actions speak louder than words…. Remember that next time you’re stuck in a traffic jam.

(En español, aquí)