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Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

cnn.com

161–170 of 392 posts

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#161

Earlier quoted context omitted.

When did the fad for compact cars end? Where did all these SUVs come from? Why do drivers want to lug all this extra weight and space around with them all the time?

The way I've heard it from drivers, suvs gives you elevation to observe the traffic and the mass to make your bad behavior problem of the other side while you gain real numbers safety.

That's a pure negative sum game though. The elevation gives you only a relative improvement in visibility if other vehicles don't increase in elevation in response, at the cost of sightlines for other road users and especially pedestrians, unless they wear platform shoes.

The same of course goes with mass.

Usually this kind of negative-sum-prisoner's-dilemma incentive matrix is resolved by government intervention which changes the payoff structure.

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#162
post #93
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One of the major problems with cars is the terrible lack of density. Per-occupant, a car occupies more space on the roadway than any other form of passenger transport. And as cars get larger, that lack of density gets even worse. There's only so much space on the road, so something has to give.

When I look at traffic in my city, I rarely see it caused by full packing. Rather throughout seems to be the issue.

Throughput is directly proportional to the volume of cars, and SUVs have larger volume. Technically perhaps surface area, but there is a psychological effect to height. I believe people also give taller vehicles more space as a rule.

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#163
Vancouver did the same thing. Now remaining parking is just filled with luxury vehicles with MSRPs that indicate you could charge $100 an hour and they wouldn’t care.

Nice of the wealthy politicians to get the riffraff off the road so the guy driving a Brabus G-Wagon, Rolls, or 911 Turbo can commute and park in peace. The poors can sit on packed busses with methheads.

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#164
post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cars are enclosed sofas that move around. Could car dominance be contributing to obesity?

I think you're selling cars short. For one thing, sofas don't have a plethora of cupholders that can accommodate any size sugary beverage within arm's reach.

Plus if I hit someone with my sofa, I'm going to jail. If I hit them with my car, it was just an accident.

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#165

[flagged]

… It’s about collectivism? If you’re such a rugged individualist that it reads this way, large cities are probably not for you. Like “we are trying to make the transport work mildly better” is the tip of the iceberg.

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#166
post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Paris has one thing that Amsterdam does not that makes cycling more challenging: elevation. (Ok, Amsterdam has bridges but those are for the most part really short and momentum is enough to carry you across).

I seriously consider 6-7bft headwind far worse than any hill. Won't get that in large cities but a bit out that's normal cycling weather.

[deleted]

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#167
post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On a nice day it's fantastic to be out, but Paris can be cold and rainy. They really need to have a plan for those days, too. Paris Metro is pretty nice, and reaches most of the car free area. But I'm not sure if it can handle all of the cyclists if they're all trying to avoid a déluge.

I have cycled every working day in The Netherlands and in Germany for years (in Germany it was 22km per day) and I would often cycle a bit recreationally in the weekends. It really isn't an issue at all. I just have a waterproof jacket (one of those that circulate air as well), water resistant shoes, and rain pants. On very rainy days, I would put on the rain pants and would arrive mostly dry. It is not really an iss…

I would almost believe this, except for your shoes get absolutely soaked.

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#168

I moved from LA to Paris, my mental and physical health improved dramatically. I don't even take the subway, walking and biking are enough where I live. Hopefully we can reach the comfort of dutch cities within a decade.

What do you think about all those videos on how dangerous Paris is? Having made the move, would you say that those stem from real experiences and are organic or would you say that it was an organized campaign for some political reason? Or maybe something else?

Trump keeps saying that they want to prevent USA becoming a dangerous place like Europe, even said that recently and the Irish president disagreed with him. As an American, would you say that EU has fallen and it has become a shithole or maybe something in between? I'm just curious if its just about differences of expectations or something.

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cyclists hitting pedestrians.

I used to cosplay as a bike messenger in Seattle. I did not follow the rules at all on my ride to work. There were few bike lanes, and a lot of morons rode on the sidewalks. I have only been to Paris once, but the cyclists were much more sane in my experience. The bike lanes were clear, and for the most part they stopped at a red light.

If car usage is going down but pedestrian injuries are going up? The pedestrians are not crashing into one another with greater frequency...

Re: Mayor of Paris removed parking spaces, reduced the number of cars

#170
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The new large cycling strips that appeared in the last 5-6 years are so good. At commute time there are frequently jammed with /cyclists/, but let's face it it's miles better than being stuck in a car. I shudder to think about the alternative where each cyclist was instead alone in a small car, this wouldn't even fit on the roads.

I would love to be on what amounts to a group ride to and from work safely. That has to do wonders for all kinds of things both physical and mental. If it were safe I would do it year round.

Yeah, unless you’re a pedestrian. Cyclists in NL in cities like Utrecht or Amsterdam are worse than car drivers.
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