Where Not To Live: Car-Free UK “Eco-Towns”

hello,i am burundian i would like to live in london but

Nice meaningless semanticide. Here’s one for you– you Jen, are a joke. May you die on your own CO. And Derrick- gosh darn it, ain’t it too bad we can’t go ’round stabbing ‘n’ shootin’ no more?

D

I used to live in LA.
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Been there….hated that…
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I’ve also been an avid bicyclist…anyone who has cycled hundreds of miles per week for years knows how motorists treat bicyclists. It isn’t pretty. It can be downright scary.
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That said, I wouldn’t support a car-free zone. It just doesn’t make sense.
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Personally, I don’t have a problem with a “car-free” town,
it’s just that the left-wing-liberal-tree-hugging community will take this idea too radically, and start trying to take our rights away…my rights away.
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We don’t have decent rapid transit where I live where I can leave the car at home.
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Taking a bicycle isn’t practical. Too dangerous, too far, etc.
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Unfortunately, we Americans are dependent on our cars.
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Our whole society has been built upon the freedom that the automobile has given us.
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How are we supposed to suddenly change that?
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Look at the way our country was designed and built folks…
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Am I supposed to sell my home and move to an apartment next to where I work?
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And if I have to change jobs, then what?
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Move again?
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I don’t think so…
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If I want to drive, let me.
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Don’t start telling me where I can and where I can’t.
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This is AMERICA, thank God.

Great response Phantomdeity.

A town where people can get around by walking or riding a bike without having to dodge vehicles? Sounds good to me!

This article is very disturbing in the way that it describes the eco towns as “Grim Prison camps”; does getting in a metal container and being confined to roads, parking spots and traffic congestion make one free? The residents are still able to leave the city in vehicles, the whole concept is just a different approach at moving a concentrated population around, because obviously the car-oriented planning of large cities is not working (look at LA, I would know because I endured the traffic for years and it is not an enjoyable or sustainable place to live).

In the article the residents were also described as “militant pedestrians”; the author, Jen Dunnaway, states this as if she cannot relate to people that walk. Walking is our most primitive form of transport and it should be given priority.

When you consider the concept of transport, you have to have some thought for the future. The population of the world is increasing and more people are moving into cities. Cars take up a lot more space and use up a lot more energy than more sustainable forms of transport such as walking, cycling and public transit. Why not embrace the change instead of viewing it as some sort of misguided grand plan to limit freedom?

Streets in Europe are hundreds sometimes thousands of years old. There very small and cramped in many towns. I guess that’s part of the reason for the ban. But still, can’t a guy at least drive a golf cart around town?

While completely banning cars is a bit extreme, I can respect the motives behind these eco-towns.
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If there were a place to live where I could convienently and SAFELY get from point A to point B on a bike, or by walking, I’d sell my car in a heartbeat and move there. The costs of auto ownership are only increasing and I already think they’re too high.
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That said, a lot of you might assume I am a car hater. Not true. I LOVE cars. Hell, I work as a builder/refurbisher/customizer in my friend’s rod and paint shop.
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What I hate is the total lack of options available to me in personal trasnportation. Being able to go where I want at any time I want shouldn’t require me to pay 3.50+ a gallon on top of insurance rates and maintenance costs. Public transportation is NOT a solution either because then you’re dependent on THEIR schedule, not your own.
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As for representation in D.C.? The government hasn’t been “for the people, by the people” in a very long time.

i like stewart’s idea. can i ride shotgun?

I want to drive the police car from the Blues Brothers through that town;)

That would be FUN!

I think California is gonna be just like that town soon.

Damn Smog-Nazis!

Wouldn’t it be great just to do a nice long break stand through that town. Then just keep on going as they couldn’t catch you on their bikes…

I imagine nobody lives there against their will? If so, well they can do whatever. I personally think going from a to b should be more efficient ultimately, a lot more, but wouldn’t want to live in a stepford-type community

You just cant have anything fun or cool over there, first knives and guns, and now cars. But whats even scarier is that the politicians that are supposed to speak for us (the people of the USA, the land of the FREE?) are trying to do the same damn fucking things, this world is nothing but bullshit!