When I visited Copenhagen a few years ago, the first thing I noticed was how quiet it was. It was still bustling with life, but with so few cars, I was quite shocked at the noise level.
Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
191–200 of 320 posts
Re: Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
#192I live in a high-rise condo next to a six-lane stroad that was even showcased on this YouTube channel and the 24/7 traffic noise is annoying, particularly when you want to go for a walk and can't even hold a conversation. This didn't happen in the places where I lived back in Europe because zoning laws were different. Instead of the sprawl of freehold single family homes separate from a dense urban core, these much q…
Say what you want about soviet city planning but it was damn efficient. I have never ever seen a soviet-era suburb which didn't have 4 to 12 story buildings with parks and aisles all around them and all kind of services being at a 5 minutes walking distance top (church, shops, post office, elementary and middle school, etc).[1] Literally under every building you would find people quietly enjoying their evening on the…
Economical progress is certainly no guarantee of happiness, and hardships do often foster a sense of camaraderie that brings people closer together. Soldiers who have been in combat, for example, find that they miss the foxhole, even though getting shot at is no one's idea of a happy time.
> People don't really enjoy their evenings chatting to each other because benches have been removed and kid playgrounds have been moved blocks away and everyone is sitting in their bunkers
There's nothing about economic growth and material wealth that requires this to happen. Something else must have changed.
> It was miles better when I was a kid in Poland.
Most things are better as a kid, without the worries of adulthood, let alone parenthood. I'd imagine the outlook for your parents raising you in the People's Republic may have been different.
Re: Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
#193Earlier quoted context omitted.
>>This means people can live within walking distance to where they work and where they shop, so they do just that: walk through quiet streets, often surrounded with trees. it would take more than changing zoning laws for that, as I understand changing jobs and such is not as common in these locations as well. If you are changing jobs every couple of years having to find a home in the same neighborhood as your new job…
> Also I prefer not be limited in my shopping choices just to the single shop that happens to be in my building or on my block... And I prefer not living with constant traffic noise and at risk of being run over every time I step outside. I prefer biking with my kid to his school, but we can't because the traffic makes it a suicidal idea. I also prefer to listen to birds when I walk to the shops nearby, but the traff…
Yes here we are, Here we are were the majority have self selected to live in the way I prefer, but people want to use government violence (i.e regulation) to force people to live in a manner they did not self select.
I have no problems if people want to create something voluntarily that is walkable, I have massive problems with using government to do it.
Re: Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
#194Earlier quoted context omitted.
>>This means people can live within walking distance to where they work and where they shop, so they do just that: walk through quiet streets, often surrounded with trees. it would take more than changing zoning laws for that, as I understand changing jobs and such is not as common in these locations as well. If you are changing jobs every couple of years having to find a home in the same neighborhood as your new job…
> Also I prefer not be limited in my shopping choices just to the single shop that happens to be in my building or on my block... I live in a mid-sized European city, and I have literally dozens of shops within 10-minute walking distance of home, as well as several banks, primary and high school, health center, several playgrounds, parks, gyms, plenty of bars and restaurants, etc.
>> dozens of shops
Do they all sell the same goods, or do you have "dozens of shops" that all specialize in a few things, like you have a bakery, coffee shop, produce shop, butcher,hardware store, etc all as independent shops
Or do you have a Kroger, Mejier, Walmart, HEB, Lowes, and HomeDepot style shopping all with in walking distance...
Re: Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
#195Earlier quoted context omitted.
Cars have more trouble going fast through narrow streets, so they go slower. Motorcycles and scooters in the city tends to have small engines for fuel economy and price, so they have to run at much higher RPMs compared to cars for the same speed. They also have much less ability to dampen the sound because the exhaust system can only be so long. Then there are people who purposely put loud pipes on. They are better s…
What's really helping is that scooters/mopeds are increasingly electric, and some of the people that used to ride noisy scooters now ride e-bikes. The sooner we get rid of those fuming noise buckets, the better.
I was surprised in how much Beijing changed from 2010 to 2020. In 2010 it was loud scooters every where, and by 2020, it was a majority of electric scooters / e-bikes, which has made a big different in some parts of the city.
Re: Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
#196I live in a high-rise condo next to a six-lane stroad that was even showcased on this YouTube channel and the 24/7 traffic noise is annoying, particularly when you want to go for a walk and can't even hold a conversation. This didn't happen in the places where I lived back in Europe because zoning laws were different. Instead of the sprawl of freehold single family homes separate from a dense urban core, these much q…
I lived on the 36th floor of a residential in a mixed-use area. Traffic noise was a low background sound, but the HVAC and mechanical systems of nearby office buildings were astonishingly loud.
Re: Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
#197I live in a high-rise condo next to a six-lane stroad that was even showcased on this YouTube channel and the 24/7 traffic noise is annoying, particularly when you want to go for a walk and can't even hold a conversation. This didn't happen in the places where I lived back in Europe because zoning laws were different. Instead of the sprawl of freehold single family homes separate from a dense urban core, these much q…
And when roads are noisy, they get noise screens to contain it. While Dutch highways tend to have speed limits of 100-130 kph, the A-10 ring highway around Amsterdam has one section that's limited to 80 kph because it passed through a densely populated area of the city. There's big apartment blocks right next to the highway (and one offramp passes straight through a building), so traffic has to go slower to keep nois…
We often put up noise barriers around highways in the US. I’m not sure what you’re talking about.
Re: Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
#198Earlier quoted context omitted.
https://www.iqair.com/japan/tokyo Site has Historic air quality graph for Tokyo and the daily chart shows the air quality is very good.
EDIT: To clarify, if you checked accuweather.com yesterday morning you would’ve seen a pollution map flooded red, AQI 142. Yep I know - but did you check how many monitoring sites they use and where they’re placed? It’s not representative of the actual experience of living here. If you’re walking, or cycling, you’re constantly in extreme close proximity to tailpipe emissions from cars and diesel trucks. The city also…
Yes, the number of pollution monitoring sites in Tokyo is quite extensive. They measure PM2.5,PM10,O3,NO2,SO2,and CO.
https://aqicn.org/map/tokyo/
This site keeps a detailed history.
I've witnessed the construction in Tokyo. I'm greatly impressed by the steps they take to monitor and reduce impact. I've seen many sites with noise monitors displaying in decibels the current noise inside and outside the construction site.
When a building across the street from my apartment was renovated I was sent detailed construction plans. The work was scheduled so that any noise would never interrupt sleep or evening relaxation. Also include was how the sunlight and shade from the new construction would change. Included was steps to take if one wished to protest the construction.
Re: Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
#199There's a jackhammer and other construction noise across the street this morning that woke me up at 7 AM.
Yes, cities are loud.
Construction is loud, sirens are loud, leaf blowers are loud, lawn mowers are loud, dogs are loud, gunshots are loud, airplanes are loud, helicopters are loud, parties are loud, trains are loud, HVAC is loud.
Re: Cities Aren't Loud: Cars Are Loud (2021) [video]
#200There are two issues here. One is that we need to come up with comprehensive solutions for reducing the number of vehicles in use. But that’s a difficult problem where solutions take decades and must be tailored to each scenario. But what can be addressed now is the engine and exhaust sound levels. Some vehicles are loud because their engines are working hard, but many vehicles are loud because people (boys) want the…
I live on an artery/thoroughfare in SF. My street also has a 10-15' retaining wall along one side that faces a small valley on the other. The noise on my street is extremely loud and echoes throughout the whole neighborhood. My favorite days and nights are Sundays when streets are the quietest. Here's how I've ordered the worst offenders in my head.
1) Harley's with open pipes 2) cars without any exhaust (common) 3) after market exhaust on import cars (thanks Fast & Furious) 4) garbage trucks, gas powered gardening equipment, 4x4's/big trucks, new muscle cars 5) scooters, mopeds, gas powered bicycles, motocross motorcycles (I get sideshows/giant groups driving up/down my street to the next location), enduro & regular motorcycles
The thing is is that there are already laws in place to deal with most of those..