...and Germany could take a leaf out of its book.
Zohran Mamdani gave a great speech today in the middle of a crossroads, clearly explaining what setting priorities in transport policy means. [Video in article]
He's definitely approachable. He was sworn in at a subway station, which was a deliberate signal. Today, he made it clear that the focus is on the safety of all road users, especially those without cars. His key message: 'It can't be that someone always has to die before the infrastructure for vulnerable groups is improved.'
The measures are well known – and effective:
🚴 Citi Bike Programme: It's the biggest bike-sharing scheme in the US, with 25,000 bikes and 1,500 stations.
🚗 Congestion pricing: It's been shown to cut car traffic, reduce environmental pollution and improve people's health.
🚌 Free public transport: It's all part of a bigger idea, you know.
The usual backlash? When he's labelled a 'communist', Mamdani just says, 'It is spelled c-y-c-l-i-s-t.' He's not put off by all the fighting between different ideologies.
My point: These approaches aren't exactly a secret. They work in Paris, Barcelona, Amsterdam and Utrecht. We've done the research and documented the successes.
Germany's falling behind on combustion engine cars, not because they don't know any better, but because politicians aren't making it a priority. New York is leading the way, but we're still talking about the obvious basics of climate-friendly and socially just mobility.
We need to stop talking about it and actually do something.
So, we've got #TransportTransition, #ClimateAction, #UrbanMobility, #PublicTransport, #VisionZero and #NewYork, as well as #SocialJustice.