Young people just not that into cars

The Australian: "In 1991, of NSW kids aged 20-24, 79 per cent had licences. By 2001 it had risen to 80 per cent. Yet by 2008 it had crashed to just 51 per cent and continues to decline. A new study in Victoria by Monash University shows the number of licence holders under 30 is dropping at more than 1 per cent a year."

Immigration battle is intentional distraction

Fund education instead of locking up refugees | Green Left Weekly: "We would have the resources to build public transport instead of more toll roads, or properly fund hospitals and the education system. A publicly owned and run economy would create the ability for Australia to put the needs of society ahead of a few billionaires."

Solving congestion with more roads has led to parking problems

 Parking can hit hip-pocket nerve | The Examiner: "LAUNCESTON has the most expensive off-street one-hour council-owned parking in the state, and the city council has no immediate plans to add more parking bays to the city."

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Australia Socialist Alliance - Advocates for free public transport

Policy on Public Transport: "The Socialist Alliance advocates:

• Free public transport
• Free carriage of bicycles on public transport
• Ending all tax concessions for company and company-purchased cars
• The imposition of a public transport levy on all CBD employers with more than 10 staff, along the lines of the French versement de transport.
• Special levies on developers who gain access to commercially profitable sites close to railway stations and bus interchanges.
• The reclassification and redeployment of all public transport staff whose job has been the sale of tickets to passenger assistance/security functions, with no loss in pay or conditions.
• Rebuilding public transport staff numbers to ensure safe, comfortable and efficient services.

The Socialist Alliance supports free public transport and will set up and run a national free public transport campaign which seeks to resource and support actions at the local level."

Canberra: better roads just lead to parking nightmares

Canberra's Road Network the Envy of the Nation: "The downside is we seem to becoming more and more like Los Angeles. While you can drive everywhere and anywhere, it is getting harder and harder to find a park."

Cars just don't fit in cities. We have built roads for decades as a solution to traffic congestion. This allows more cars to get where they are going quickly. But where do you put the car when you get there? In the city, this is a real problem.

Commuting to Brisbane by car costs more than by public transport

Car Commuters Likely To Earn Less, Says Report: "The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries says small passenger vehicles are the most commonly sold car in Australia, and the RACQ nominates the Hyundai i30 Active as the best small car under $35,000. According to the RACQ, that car costs 59.90¢ a kilometre to run, inclusive of fuel, tyres, services and repairs. That makes the cost of the return 21.5 kilometre weekday commute $128.78, more than double the cost of public transport."

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Corporatocracy killing grassroots democracy

TheAge.com: "Freedom of speech is no small thing, but is anyone with power actually listening? If you are speaking on behalf of a community that sees its quality of life threatened by fast food outlets, freeways, power stations or coal mines, you probably shouldn't hold your breath waiting for someone in power to respond. You think it's a bad idea to invest in roads when overwhelming evidence points to the need for public transport, never mind destroying precious parkland in order to move gridlocked traffic from the end of the Eastern Freeway into a tunnel? It's not up for debate, least of all by the people immediately affected by it! Government determination to build the east-west tunnel without regard to expert opinion, community opposition, fiscal responsibility or common sense sends a clear message. They have the power and they intend to use it."

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