According to reports, cities like Paris, Copenhagen, and Oxford will ban gas and/or diesel vehicles in some or all of the city, as early as 2019. Any reason Newton shouldn’t do something similar?
Of course, the three cities are designed to be much less car-dependent, making it easier to not use a motor vehicle at all. But, there’s no reason Newton couldn’t get there. Cars are not an inevitability.
Clickbait.
This is a noble idea but not in any way feasible. Initiatives like these need to be regional, not limited to one 18.19 square mile municipality located just outside of a major city.
I’m glad Sean raises these provocative questions and is willing to suffer the slings and arrows of various opponents with high spirit and endurance. I’m also pleased to report that one of the two Burke household vehicles is an electric Smart Car. The fact that the other is an 11 year old 6 cylinder Mercedes shall go unmentioned.
Paris, Copenhagen have world class public transportation systems. We do not and I don’t suspect we will until long after I and many other bloggers pass on to our eternal reward. In fact, with the way priorities are being dismantled in Washington, we may never have a system that could handle even a very modest increase in the number of passengers served. Has anyone taken the Green D line into Boston during rush hour periods? Commuters are already packed into the cars like sardines by the time the train pulls into Reservoir and the slightest glitch (signal malfunction, stalled car ahead, etc) backs the whole system up at an intolerable level. And if you live in the Highlands be prepared for a very long commute with one or more transfers to get to work if you are going anywhere but downtown Boston or the stops in between. The Green Line is a great service for a retired senior like me who can jaunt in and out of Boston during off peak periods; but for most of those that commute to work during rush hour periods, it’s either a disaster or just tolerable depending on how well the system is functioning on any particular day. And every new day brings a new set of surprises.
Now, we are told that smart growth with centered development in our village centers will be environmentally friendly because our new residents will be close to public transportation whether it’s the Green “D” Line, commuter rail or bus to work. But, in fact, this would only add to the overloading of the D Line and it is really a leap of faith to believe that this is going to do much of anything to upgrade commuter rail on the north side of the City. This really is a leap of faith, but no more so than the suggestion that those of us favoring a NO vote on the proposed charter will somehow be responsible for an increase in greenhouse gases and other forms of environmental degradation.
Bob, I couldn’t agree more with the entirety of your post. The green line is third world transit no question or doubt about it. And the enlightened civic political establishment is mandating we orient our city design around it ?!!!!
And ban gasoline and diesel cars ?!!!!
This is some kind of V14 joke joke ( yuppie scum’s “click bait”), and we are supposed to take it seriously. What’s next ?
The D line is a joke! We are lucky to have it, until you need to get anywhere ON TIME. Some days I can make it to Fenway Park in 20 minutes, and sometimes it can take an hour to get to Government Center.
If you ban the cars, the public transportation system needs to improve vastly! There is no way for kids to get from the north side to the south side without a car (Uber, taxi, parent).
I also think we have some bigger issues to solve like the unfunded pension, old buildings, aging structures before we can get to to gasoline free cars.
When Newton will have the whole gamut of public transportation – subway, trains, buses, bikes (which can be brought onto the bus, subway or train) – that Paris, Copenhagen, and Oxford have, and run them frequently as they do in those cities then absolutely.
Ban or not, recent statements by the world’s major car companies point to a rapid conversion to electric vehicles for new sales in the next decade. The places that do ban internal combustion vehicles will help drive this changeover, but it is going to happen anyway. With fewer parts requiring service, electric vehicles will also last longer.
With many of Newton’s village centers in line for a once-in-a-generation redesign, we have the opportunity to benefit from this change through planning. Every area with on-street parking meters should also have conduit and pads put down for future charging stations. That will let us add chargers to the business districts later without ripping things up again.
That means that in the future, shoppers in the business districts to charge while shopping. Electricity would be pay-for, just like meters, all billed through an app. It’s an extra benefit of lingering and spending money locally.
Installing the underground infrastructure while the roads and sidewalks are ripped up is minimal cost insurance for future opportunities.
I like my car — a very comfortable, fuel-efficient 2008 Toyota. I use it to get to work, to load eight bags of groceries in, to drive my kids to school, to activities, to, God forbid, the hospital. If I were single or an empty-nester and living in Brookline or Cambridge, perhaps I would rely on the T. If electric or hybrid cars ever are mass produced and are more affordable than now (and I think that will eventually happen) I’d be very excited to have one.
In the meantime, I am pleased that the price of a gallon of gas is reasonable.