Antisocial, societal issues thread

Don't Skip Leg Day · Aug 4, 2024

Cyclists don't belong on the roads. Need banning.

Bada-Bing! · Aug 4, 2024

Don't Skip Leg Day said:
Cyclists don't belong on the roads. Need banning.

Not going to happen. What they need is more protected cycling infrastructure or giving up road space for cyclists via LTNs or no entry/through traffic. Then they wouldn't need to be on busy roads and it takes more cars off of roads.

Don't Skip Leg Day · Aug 4, 2024

Bada-Bing! said:
Not going to happen. What they need is more protected cycling infrastructure or giving up road space for cyclists via LTNs or no entry/through traffic. Then they wouldn't need to be on busy roads and it takes more cars off of roads.

I don't think it does take cars off the road, cycling just isn't a viable alternative for the majority of people.

I'd also add that the wankers in their tight fitting clothes cycling around on racing bikes need to be banned completely. They are a danger to others and themselves.

Bada-Bing! · Aug 4, 2024

Don't Skip Leg Day said:
I don't think it does take cars off the road, cycling just isn't a viable alternative for the majority of people.

Well, it can if they are commuting or going to school and If they are not driving instead.

It's a pity, Seeing as obesity rates are rising in this country and we need to get people out of their cars especially for short journeys. That and getting to net zero. The benefits greatly outweigh the disadvantages.

Don't Skip Leg Day said:
I'd also add that the wankers in their tight fitting clothes cycling around on racing bikes need to be banned completely. They are a danger to others and themselves.

Agreed. Thankfully, I am not one of them. They treat shared paths as well as roads as race tracks. I've told a number of them to slow the f down and it's not a race track. Not that it did much good.

Don't Skip Leg Day · Aug 5, 2024

Bada-Bing! said:
Well, it can if they are commuting or going to school and If they are not driving instead.

It's a pity, Seeing as obesity rates are rising in this country and we need to get people out of their cars especially for short journeys. That and getting to net zero. The benefits greatly outweigh the disadvantages.

Agreed. Thankfully, I am not one of them. They treat shared paths as well as roads as race tracks. I've told a number of them to slow the f down and it's not a race track. Not that it did much good.

The problem is for me I drive everywhere. Why?

School is too far for the kids to cycle and then either me or my wife arrive to work on time. I work about 40miles away from where I live and my wife only works about 8 miles away but has to start work/finish work and collect kids at certain times making it impossible to do anything other than drive.

Shops need to be driven to get shopping in boot etc. Then other journeys like the gym or rugby training all need to be driven to due to times starting and finishing work etc.

Life is too expensive since and busy to not use a car for everything. Even short journeys because I've got to be somewhere. It's **** but that's the way it is.

The whole carbon neutral thing annoys me though, look at the uk compared to the rest of the world and tell me anything we do will change anything. Especially with this stupid electric car obsession that will end up being worse for the environment in a whole life cost basis. Really not sure why hydrogen cars arnt being forced as the collect technology going forward but you can bet that those ministers that are trying to force electric cars have shares/ business interests in either the cars or the charging stations.

I hate all politicians.

Which Tyler · Aug 5, 2024

Out of interest - which of those elements are choices that have been made, as opposed to enforced upon you?

Are there houses closer to the school? or schools closer than you house?
Could you have bought a house closer to work? or changed jobs to work closer to home?

Yes - you need to drive to get shopping into the car boot.... unless you don't, but go most days, or order online.

As someone who hasn't owned a car for 17 years, none of these things seem insurmountable to me - you just made choices based around owning a car, and thus making a car feel essential.
Obviously though, depending on location, there may be no housing you could afford within walking/cycling distance of work - but even that isn't insoluble with public transport, and the option of changing jobs. You presumably find the solution of owning a car more palatable than the alternatives, but that's a choice.

Of course, Britain going carbon neutral won't make a huge amount of difference whilst USA, China, India etc don't do anything - no more than does 1 person's choice to ditch the car make a huge amount of difference whilst those around them don't.
A] That's letting the perfect prevent the achievable
B] If we want to convince others, then we have to be willing to make the sacrifices ourselves.
C] We have to do what we can, as individuals, as communities, as nations, as multi-national coalitions.

From what (little) I've gleaned on the whole-life cost of electric cars, you're about a decade out of date saying that they're worse than ICE.
I agree that hydrogen looks the best bet - once the issues have been ironed out (issues demonstrated by things like the Hindenburg (not that Lithium batteries are hugely better there). Again though, electric is the best available, so we shouldn't bin it for not being perfect. From what I gather there are (far, far) better batteries in development, possibly needing future tech to make commercially viable - much like hydrogen.

I only hate the vast majority of politicians.

ETA: That all sounds more aggressive than intended when I read it back, but I've got to go to work, so won't re-write the whole thing - my apologies, the questions are genuine.

Bada-Bing! · Aug 5, 2024

Don't Skip Leg Day said:
Really not sure why hydrogen cars arnt being forced as the collect technology going forward but you can bet that those ministers that are trying to force electric cars have shares/ business interests in either the cars or the charging stations.

As far as I know Hydrogen cars is just never going to be cost effective on a mass scale - it'll cost more trying to pipe the electricity to create the green hydrogen in the first place. Might as well just pipe that electricity straight into the car. Solid state batteries is the way to go, but again that will increase the capital cost of buying EVs, which not everyone is going to be able to afford. Cars are not only a way to get around; they are a status symbol, being the person's second most valuable asset after their home.

This boils down to peeps thinking about the purpose of their journeys - and using their ICE cars far less. In urban areas - the problem is that it has been designed with cars to be the most convenient - build more roads, just get filled with more cars, in terms of stuck in congestion, and also parking. Homes often have more than one car- which urban designers way back in the 20th century never planned for. Nowadays cars are just littered on streets.

I think the Govt. is beginning to panic how they are going to make up the annual £34 billion shortfall that they going to lose when people switching to EVs. it's all been a big con on the drivers using their VED and VAT/Fuel duty to subsidise their public spending/paying off public debt, without proper investment in the road network, which is just full of potholes. Road pricing is the most logical next step or a big tax on electricity being piped into EVs.

Don't Skip Leg Day · Aug 5, 2024

There are hydrogen vehicles around at the moment in use, just needs the technology to become cheaper and scaled up (like was forced with electric vehicles).

Which Tyler said:
Out of interest - which of those elements are choices that have been made, as opposed to enforced upon you?

Are there houses closer to the school? or schools closer than you house?
Could you have bought a house closer to work? or changed jobs to work closer to home?

Yes - you need to drive to get shopping into the car boot.... unless you don't, but go most days, or order online.

As someone who hasn't owned a car for 17 years, none of these things seem insurmountable to me - you just made choices based around owning a car, and thus making a car feel essential.
Obviously though, depending on location, there may be no housing you could afford within walking/cycling distance of work - but even that isn't insoluble with public transport, and the option of changing jobs. You presumably find the solution of owning a car more palatable than the alternatives, but that's a choice.

Of course, Britain going carbon neutral won't make a huge amount of difference whilst USA, China, India etc don't do anything - no more than does 1 person's choice to ditch the car make a huge amount of difference whilst those around them don't.
A] That's letting the perfect prevent the achievable
B] If we want to convince others, then we have to be willing to make the sacrifices ourselves.
C] We have to do what we can, as individuals, as communities, as nations, as multi-national coalitions.

From what (little) I've gleaned on the whole-life cost of electric cars, you're about a decade out of date saying that they're worse than ICE.
I agree that hydrogen looks the best bet - once the issues have been ironed out (issues demonstrated by things like the Hindenburg (not that Lithium batteries are hugely better there). Again though, electric is the best available, so we shouldn't bin it for not being perfect. From what I gather there are (far, far) better batteries in development, possibly needing future tech to make commercially viable - much like hydrogen.

I only hate the vast majority of politicians.

ETA: That all sounds more aggressive than intended when I read it back, but I've got to go to work, so won't re-write the whole thing - my apologies, the questions are genuine.

So that's a lot of questions, but in short no to all.

I could walk the kids to school with where I live but then couldn't walk to work or move jobs to be closer (so there is none of my industry in my town). Time is the bigger factor though in that even if I walked the kits to school and then walked back home to then drive to work it doesn't work timewise with a. School times b. Work times.

When we bought our house it was about what we could afford in an area we could walk to the in-laws in (which is important).

I cover a national role and have needed to drive to offices around the country for years so couldn't do my job (in any company) without a car.

That being said I understand that some people, in some locations, in some lucky circumstances could get away without a car.

For me it is impossible.

Which Tyler · Aug 6, 2024

Just need to vent, whilst the cup of tea is brewing.

Just need to vent whilst a cup of tea is brewing.
Just had a new patient cancel, and demand my General Council number so that she can lodge a complaint - because I don't have a car-park.
I'm a one-room practice in town centre. There are 2 car parks within 150m of my front door.
My confirmation email includes the location of the nearest car park, and our distance from it.

I might just find that my diary is mysteriously full if she tries to rebook.

Don't Skip Leg Day · Aug 6, 2024

Which Tyler said:
Just need to vent, whilst the cup of tea is brewing.

Just need to vent whilst a cup of tea is brewing.
Just had a new patient cancel, and demand my General Council number so that she can lodge a complaint - because I don't have a car-park.
I'm a one-room practice in town centre. There are 2 car parks within 150m of my front door.
My confirmation email includes the location of the nearest car park, and our distance from it.

I might just find that my diary is mysteriously full if she tries to rebook.

I hope you are out this afternoon building your own private car park just for her