Let's be realistic, this is one of the most expensive countries in the world to own and operate a motor vehicle. We have a Road network that is poor and never completed to accommodate the capacity for the population of just 50 million.Now it is likely to exceed 70 million and head towards 80 million.Even with 60 million the movements of people cannot be accommodated.60 million, a huge part of which needs to get to work, get to school, get a myriad of errands done. Unless you want to descend into a third world economy , then road transport and access for all has to be included.For some, too many a car costs over 50% of an income. But is the only means of a career and any sort of income. You have to be quite lucky to have an occupation or a salary that negates needing a car.I wonder how many of these non car using councillors would be so if they had to be at work at 5 am or travel 50 miles to work with no train links or fares that make a car cheap by comparison, or indeed if they had to carry more than a laptop to work ?For many there is no practical or affordable choice.In a country where joined up thinking is verboten. Where public transport trails behind and is expensive, where it takes 20 years just to reopen a minor train branch and where costs exceed viability by a country mile.The burgeoning population is the unsustainable core. And yet it remains undiscussed, unactioned yet actively promoted.When the Climate Bandwagon starts to address this rather than go to lengths silencing those who have dared to raise the issue then maybe it can become a serious problem with serious objectives rather than a cash cow and trendy bandwagon to jump on with a few bob to make
Raymond Havelock ● 321d