Councils can be drivers for change in car use
Are they serious? It’s fashionable for councils to declare climate emergencies these days. But what are they actually doing to tackle climate emergency? Is it just words if they don’t offer any encouragement or initiatives to help ratepayers know what they can do to change their behaviour and start to make a small difference?
At a global webinar recently, mobility futurist Tim Papandeou said: “Round-trip car sharing is the only proven tool that can change the congestion situation and create the precipitous drop needed in car ownership. It’s the first thing I would focus on if I led a city.”
Emissions caused by cars are one of the biggest contributors to the climate emergency, but what is the council doing? Councils around the country have declared the house is on fire but are keeping the gas on.
The car and our attitude to it need a serious rethink. Businesses and local
government could support and encourage a reduction in car ownership and use round-trip car share. This small change would achieve better traffic flow, and result in fewer cars sitting in traffic jams, thus less pollution. Back to base car share is recognised as the next big transport mobility disrupter.
Car share is the closest thing to car ownership and helps people think differently while offering them what car ownership does, mobility and flexibility.
Auckland Transport research last year showed more than 49 per cent of Cityhop members no longer owned, had sold a car or delayed buying a car after joining the car-share service. This is the equivalent of every Cityhop car removing 14 private cars off the road.
Car-share members drive less — on average 2000km less. This provides significant reductions in congestion, emissions and creates more public space.
Two thirds of car journeys are short — less than 2km. So most people have an expensive large machine parked 94 per cent of the time to do largely short journeys which could often be done via walking/biking. For longer journeys when you need a car, car share is the answer.
It’s the gateway for owning one car fewer and using all the other mobility choices. So what could our councils do?
We need good local government leadership and what Tim Papandeou calls some civic guard rails. If this new mobility doesn’t meet core fundamental criteria, then councils aren’t looking out for their residents, workers or visitors.
Guard rail number one is safety. Does the mobility provider offer a safe operating system? Car-share operators abide by the Land Transport Act, have a rental service licence and cars have a Commercial WoF, which means a higher standard of safety.
Papandeou says that, world over, the private car is over-subsidised and car share is undersubsidised so we need to work out how to flick that switch.
The more cars added to car share, the better chance of reducing individual cars.
Papandeou suggests cities start with themselves, show leadership, give every council employee a car-share membership and get rid of the council fleet. The same for business fleets. Cities should make laws so that every new residential or commercial development has to provide car share.
Ensure there are always car-share spaces near hubs, transit, and places with a lot of retail shopping. Anywhere people gather, make more space for car sharing.
Those one or two dedicated car parks will be used 10 times more than a private car will use the space. There will be more space, fewer people owning and, even better, it will be a major plank in a climatechange programme.