To think this, is how the Tories could win?

[madamreign]

Sunak is setting out his stall as pro-car:

www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/sep/28/rishi-sunak-expected-to-limit-powers-of-councils-in-england-to-curb-car-use-20mph-speed-limit-traffic-camera-fines

This could actually swing it for him. People sink vast amounts of time and money into their cars, they're aspirational status symbols. The UK loves it's cars.

Exactly this. Close to us, a speeding, drunken driver killed a teenager a few years ago. We now have a lower speed limit, traffic lights, "no overtaking" road markings. Guess what, another drunken/speeding driver crashed at almost the same place a few months ago, luckily only killing himself! Drunken and/or speeding motorists are highly unlikely to take any notice of road signs!

Pretty sure that poster is saying that those are the narratives the tories (aided by the media) will use against Starmer / Labour and that the electorate will lap it up.

No. I don’t believe any of it.
but I’ve heard rishi and Boris use every single one against kier starmer and they’ve never argued it back against them.

there’s tik tok posts, Facebook groups etc that spread it as fact, partly because it’s ignored

@Gerrataere

Commuting that distance daily is not feasible. Not for any length of time.

Five miles is nothing on a bike for the majority of people.

Anyway, I don't want my inner city area clogged with cars simply to humour a few outliers who live miles away.

Yeah it's mudslinging, like the Hillary Clinton emails thing, people don't examine the underlying claim and its merits, they just pin 'dodgy' on someone if the same thing is repeated about them enough times.

No. They take it as fact. And that’s what Labour haven’t got to grips with. They do need to spell it out sadly

There was a thread not long ago asking "What would stop you voting for Labour?" and nearly all the responses said "TWAW" (trans women are women). Obviously a very female/MN answer. Perhaps after some said that others just followed suit.

(ps. I always recognise your posts because of the bizarre punctuation. Don't stop though - it's like your personal calling card!)

@VegetablesFightingToReclaimTheAubergieneEmoji

And it's a very northern city that I live in. Still don't want it clogged with cars doing two miles.

Insulting people for not voting the way you think they should vote hasnt worked so far has it ,why do you think it will.work now?

True. What did make a difference was the barrier the council erected after 2 more accidents, and a load of ladies protesting, and loads of DHs having to come and bail them out of the station. Including my late DM.

But that's not the point. We don't adjust laws to account for arseholes do we ? After all we may as well say because a ban on guns is not working we may as well not enforce it do we ?

Well I don't. But then I don't have the sort of mind that thinks the sort of people that can't got at 20 mph need to be indulged by fucking the country even further. And I don't apologise to anyone who does.

He can’t ride a bike, even if he could he couldn’t pack his workload onto one with his job. It’s not feasible and quite frankly a laughable suggestion. If public transport was actually workable then I agree that less cars on the road in cities (at least) would be a huge positive. I feel you are speaking from the position of a Londoner or similar Met type city. You don’t seem to understand the realities of the majority of the country in both using public transport nor the rest of the issues that avalanches from not being able to commute effectively.

I felt that way until someone pointed out (on here) where we are now has all come under Tory government. So what have they done to protect women’s rights?

I don’t know if they will but I’m not sure it’s cars that will do it. But then I don’t care much about cars so maybe not resonating as much here

Imo immigration will be a rising factor

Then campaign for better public transport!

By the way, my son doesn't want a car to drive into the city centre - if nothing else, the council car parks pricing is extortionate (despite empty car parks). He is now using his car to drive to the park n ride and get a more reliable (and cheaper) bus service into the city centre. For some reason, the PNR buses run on time and have a much more frequent service, even running until as late as 10pm at night - something the local buses don't do! Seems counter-intuitive to drive out from within the city ring road, to the PNR on the outskirts, to get a bus back in again, but it's the only way to get a decent service and guarantee to get to work on time! So, more car miles driven because of crap local buses. That's the reality of life outside London and other big cities with good public transport.

Am I right in thinking that Mumsnet opinion has been on the wrong side quite often. MN thought we would vote Remain, Corbyn was the future. Thought Teresa May would prevail after Brexit. Johnson didn't stand a chance, but he did get 80 seat majority.
(I only joined in Lockdown, lurked a bit before)

I've named changed for this.

I work in this field, I'm a local authority transport planner in a conservative council area. The general consensus in our team and the wider industry, is that the government have finally lost the plot. In our area we struggle to get any schemes through that aren't car based.

The bus industry is on its arse, and due to funding cuts, subsidies are a fraction of what they were. We've tried to get money made available for buses from our own funds, and our council won't prioritise it. Most of our transport funds go on fixing potholes and resurfacing roads. We shy away from any projects will add any time to a motorist's journey. Any cycling or walking schemes, and in particular those that reduce road space are fought tooth and nail. Even the way in which value for money of schemes is calculated is weighted in favour of journey times and efficient car use. I was talking the other day with a colleague, and we both agreed getting anything delivered is nigh on impossible. It's almost laughable.

We are due to start writing a new local transport plan, a document we are required to have, and which government wanted all authorities to update. we were led to believe this new plan would be more focused on offering better alternatives and travel options and a genuine desire to reduce carbon. We were told we'd get policy guidance on how to write the plan more than 12 months ago now. And we're still waiting.

This is a shambolic way to make policy.

Jesus fucking wept. our roads around here are 20mile an hour - schools, lots of pedestrians, narrow streets etc and the world hasn’t fucking ended because of it.
In fact anyone going faster than that anyway is probably a dickhead anyway.

But, yes by all means, let’s focus on cars as climate change irreversibly changes our lives and weather for ever. That’s what really counts as our health service and schools crumble for lack of money and investment.

@changedenom2023

Most of our transport funds go on fixing potholes and resurfacing roads.

Buses and delivery lorries use the roads too and probably cause more damage than much lighter cars!

The majority of voters in Uxbridge must either be rich or thick (or both). I feel so sorry for anyone living there who didn't vote Tory. I mean they voted in Boris 😱 and now this.

I live in a labour majority city but locally have tory mp and Councillor. They're always complaining about the Labour local council claiming they are anti motorist for doing things like putting cycle lanes in (because the disruption of road works is annoying for drivers), and making the city centre a low emissions zone (I've always felt driving there is best avoided before this policy, if you can't afford a car that meets the lpw emissions criteria get the bus?). So this isn't really new for the tories.

It was an anti ulez vote.

I live in zone 3 with great public transport. People are still up in arms about the low traffic neighbourhood and school streets because it's apparently too hard for them in their special circumstances to walk or take public transport anywhere. I see one of my neighbours not infrequently drive their children 0.2 miles to school.

Lots of people are just obsessed with driving everywhere

Someone wrote about the car gave him independence when he grew up. It is this independence that we object to losing.
Around me are families where 4 people have to get to 4 different destinations between 7.45 and 9.00. The children have bags of things to take to school young children to nursery. Parents have to get to work. Individual journeys are only a mile or two but Buses don't get you there and back in the available time.
In Oxford they have declared war on residents with cars. It is the future they say. It is a shambles.

Even then, how many people can walk 3 miles (or even 1 to 2 miles) regularly if there is no viable public transport? Then add rain, snow, hilly roads and heavy bags to the mix. "Short" car journeys are necessary in many parts of the country where decent public transport is virtually non-existent (I don't live in a rural area at all and yet the nearest form of public transport is a 35min speed walk or 45 normal speed min walk away). If we all had a London style tube system in the country, then of course there would be less need for cars, but until then, lots of people still need to drive. I can't think go anyone who just drives for the fun of it.

If people choose which party to vote for to rule their country for 4/5 years based on CARS then we truly we deserve this absolute abomination of a government we have now.