Auto-Free World

Global Warming Still Real, Big Chill in Northeast Part of Worst Case Predictions
According to the Woods Hole Institute, this year's record cold spell in the Northeast falls within the worst case predictions of global climate models. These models predict that as most of the world gets warmer--which is happening--average winter temperatures in the northeastern U.S could fall by nine degrees F. Scientists note that climate change is expected to happen rapidly, not gradually, as the name "global warming" implies. The cold spell may be related to predicted changes in the Gulf Stream which carriers warm water north and inflates temperatures in the northeast and northern europe by 9.5 F over what they would otherwise be.
-Wall St. Journal

Japanese Government to Pay for Road-Related Asthma
A group of Japanese asthma sufferers has won $638,000 in a suit against the Japanese government alleging that road-related air pollution in Tokyo either gave them asthma or exacerbated existing asthma. The plaintiffs live within 55 yards of major roads and highways in central Tokyo. The court cited the failure of the national and local authorities to properly build and manage Tokyo's roads.
-Carfree Times

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Norway Looks at Tax Breaks for Commuting Cyclists
norway is considering tax breaks for employees who agree to leave their cars at home and bike to work. The proposal is part of the Public Roads Administration's "national bicycle strategy" to make riding a bike both safe and attractive.

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Queen's Trooper Shoots Cyclist To Relieve Boredom
A soldier with the Queen's guards shot a cyclist in the arm because he was bored in central London in Fall 2002. The soldier was spared prison after magistrates in London heard he was an "admirable" soldier. The court chairman said: "It was an incredibly foolish thing to do. But you are clearly a soldier going somewhere. We don't want to interfere with that by jailing you."

Africa's Public Transit Renaissance
Two of africa's most respected and recently elected statesmen, President Kufuor of Ghana and President Wade of Senegal, placed improving public transit at the top of their inaugural agendas. Recently, the capital cities of Accra and Dakar have appealed to international transportation experts for help realizing modern Bus Rapid Transit corridors and cycleways-the first such systems in Africa.
-ITDP

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Oil-Short Venezuelans Turn to Bikes
while sales of most items are down because of Venezuela's general strike, one item is hot: the bicycle. Before the strike, streets in the capital were usually choked with vehicles and a gasoline shortage in this oil-rich nation seemed unthinkable. But the Caracas traffic jams and the gasoline vanished when Venezuela's largest labor union and business chamber began a general strike in December 2002 to demand President Hugo Chavez' resignation.
-Associated Press

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Car Ownership on the Rise in the EU
Car ownership per 1,000 inhabitants in the European Union increased from 292 to 469 between 1980 and 2000. The increase can partly be attributed to the adoption of environmentally-damaging transport policies by central and eastern European countries joining the EU.
-T&E Bulletin

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Delhi Unveils Sustainable Transport Policy
In November, the Delhi government announced that seven new high capacity busways would be developed, along with other measures to improve public transport and non-motorized travel. They aim to have one corridor completed by the end of 2003.
-ITDP

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Car Talk Host Admits He's Car-Free
"Car Talk," hosted by Tom and Ray Magliozzi (aka Click and Clack), is the most popular entertainment show on U.S. public radio, heard by 3.7 million people each weekend. It's one of car culture's major pop icons. In an unusual spurt of semi-seriousness, the wisecracking brothers and MIT-educated auto mechanics decided recently to launch a political crusade of sorts, against sport-utility vehicles. It turns out that the Magliozzis are not especially fond of other types of automobiles, either: "I do not own a car," Tom admitted. "I either ride a bicycle or use public transportation."
-Car Busters

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