-
Compulsory National Service – FFS
[Apologies. The image for this post may cause offence to young people who care more about climate change than empire.] It appears the Prime Minister (or one of his SPADs) has been watching his box set of Yes Prime Minister desperately hoping to find inspiration to win a few votes. Nothing like looking back to Read more
-
Archeologists are baffled
Archeologists are baffled by discovery of an ancient document that supposedly offered a guiding light in a bygone era. “We’re still unclear whether or not these principles were meant to be put into practice or just a nice theory” said Professor Xavier Rumpus, a specialist in public discourse and protest. His colleague Professor Beatrice Profitte Read more
-
From Hell I Rise (and I’m NOT talking about Predict and Provide!)
Predict and Provide just keeps rising from the dead, doesn’t it? Bear with me. The album ‘From Hell I Rise’ has just arrived. A little of what you fancy does you good. Calling all my metalhead connections – this is a BIG hashtag#MetalFriday. I remember going with Robin Lyons to see Slayer for their final Read more
-
Amazing women in the construction industry
Storytelling, personal journeys, and leaders walking the walk help us to nurture talent, embrace diversity and foster an inclusive working environment. But we have a long way to go. I have been at the annual Construction Industry Council (CIC) conference today on behalf of Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT) – a gathering of Read more
-
Let’s get interrailing – place your bets now
I’ve never been to Glastonbury Festival but I’m guessing getting your summer rail journey planned across Europe is on a par with the stress of whether or not you’ll get a Glasto ticket when they become available. Last year for the family holiday in southern spain I went by train (while the others flew). The Read more
-
Decarbonising transport – buckle up!
Here’s your progressively zoomed-in May 2024 update on decarbonisation: globally as a whole, globally for transport, globally for direct emissions from transport, for direct emissions from transport in the UK and for car driving and flying. The story goes like this in brief: We need to reduce emissions globally by 45% compared to 2010 levels Read more
-
People at the heart
Our journeys through life and careers are about people at the heart. I am increasingly aware of this as I reflect. It was therefore a most welcome opportunity this weekend to head to The Black Heart in Camden Town, London. Will Pedley will be known to many of you as the current Transport Planner of Read more
-
We’ve been told so often that economic growth is a good thing that we can’t see past it
Cognitive fluency is an unconscious bias whereby things that are harder to understand are less believable. For most of us, we’ve been told so often that economic growth is a good thing that we can’t see past it. The idea of NOT wanting economic growth is unthinkable, even blasphemous to growth worshipers. I found this Read more
-
Should I give up Black Mass or going to the annual Transportation Research Board conference to fight climate change?
Should I drink 5000 cans of beer each year or fly to the Transportation Research Board annual conference in Washington? The myclimate website suggests that “In order to stop climate change this is the maximum amount of CO2 that can be generated by a single person in a year: 0.600tCO2”. I’m not sure what ‘stop Read more
-
Are the UK political parties in listening mode on transport? The CIHT manfesto has been launched today
BREAKING NEWS 📢 Vote for us and we’ll ensure transport gets worse more slowly than the other parties. This was Phil Goodwin’s observation years ago on why transport does not tend to feature strongly at election time. Now, beyond addressing traffic congestion, there are bigger fish to fry. So will the UK’s political parties give Read more
-
Meeting someone for the first time when you feel like you’ve know them for years
Meeting someone for the first time when you feel like you’ve know them for years. I had the great pleasure of spending some time at home with Tim Sullivan today and his wonderful family as they passed through on their way back to Australia. It was impossible in the space of a couple of hours Read more
-
You can ‘fly off on holidays and eat steak’ under net zero
Chris Stark – thank you for all your immensely important work with the CCC. But I’m totally non-plussed by “you can still fly off on holiday each year, and you can have a steak if you want to. There’s not a huge shift here”. I’d genuinely welcome an explanation so I understand. The message to Read more
-
As many of us stagger into Christmas, dazed by the surreal existences we now lead where we simultaneously get on with the day job while facing the extential threat of climate change, peaceful protesters are being imprisoned. When I began my career in transport over 30 years ago I could not have imagined the digitalised…
-
On the sixth day of Christmas my true love gave to me…. six triple access futures, and a mental model in a pear tree. Daniela Paddeu and I are pleased to share our new paper (free to access) which sets out how systems thinking can be used to make sense of the Triple Access System we…
-
COP28 or COPOUT28? On the day the thrashed-out result emerged, I have been proudly attending the graduation ceremony of my son Robin Lyons. Alongside running Ergon Theatre (one of the UK’s leading climate theatre companies) and his own carbon literacy training company ‘Climate Leadership Training’ (https://www.climateleadershiptraining.co.uk/), Robin has studied full-time for his Masters in Environmental Governance at the…
-
Just Stop Oil. How much plainer could it be? We are up shit creek. Oil lobbyists, right through into the heart of COP28 and with their tendrils into governments and the media, are fighting like cornered rats. They are banking on the fact that most people seem either ambivalent, in denial as the first stage…
-
Climate action, Equality, diversity and inclusion, and Professionalism. And Megadeth🤘 The Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT) Annual Luncheon is a gathering to behold. 1700+ people together in one sitting to reflect upon the year gone by and the imperatives ahead that require our attention. Our President Karen McShane was stateswomanlike in her speeches with heartfelt and eloquent…
What the hell is going on? 