Posts by Chris Waugh
Last ←Newer Page 1 2 3 4 5 Older→ First
-
Hard News: Television and the Public Good, in reply to Ian Dalziel,
Nature may abhor a vacuum but John Key and co seem hell bent on creating empty heads...
"Try not to exalt the worthy,
So that the people shall not compete.
Try not to value rare treasures,
So that the people shall not steal.
Try not to display the desirable,
So that the people's hearts shall not be disturbed.
Therefore the sage governs the people by
Purifying their minds,
Filling their bellies,
weakening their ambitions,
And strengthening their bones.
He always keeps them innocent of knowledge and desires,
And makes the crafty afraid to run risks.
He conducts affairs on the principle of take-no-action,
And everything will surely fall into order."Daodejing Chapter 3, emphasis mine, alternative translations here.
Never woulda picked John Key for a reader of classical Chinese philosophy.
-
Hard News: Staying Alive, in reply to Ross Mason,
TXTing is a hell of a lot easier on a bike.
And just as dangerous.
Now, if between 'Trucks (large)' and 'buses', you add the following:
Cars with military licence plates
Cars with People's Armed Police licence plates
Cars with diplomatic licence plates (especially if they have a little flag for the ambassador)and change 'Ford Falcons' and 'Holdens' to 'Hondas' (don't know why, but Honda drivers here are arrogant nutjobs), then you've pretty much described the situation in China, too.
-
Machinery hard at work on the very early stages of building a new subway station. And the buildings behind are where I work, the closest is where my office is.
-
Capture: Roamin' Holiday, in reply to Sofie Bribiesca,
Thanks, Sofie, love that dragon and bird! Funny, but I don't see lanterns that awesome around here. Beijing seems to have taken a definite preference to the fireworks since they were re-legalised within the 5th Ring Road for the Spring Festival period. Given the howling norwester that sprang up last night, I doubt any lanterns will last long, anyway.
元宵节快乐！
-
but but but… Lantern Festival is tomorrow! Well, probably today by the time anybody else reads this. And a worknight here, too, but judging by previous years’ experience, that won’t stop any barrage of fireworks.
Awesome lanterns, though.
And who said scary dolls? We were in a toy store this afternoon and saw a row of dolls imported from Japan. My wife shivered and said, so scary, they look like ghosts. They did indeed look like they belonged in a horror film.
On a celebratory theme – the photo is my daughter and her mummy and mummy's 30th birthday cake yesterday (quick edit when I realised I took that photo before the candles had been lit).
-
Hard News: Staying Alive, in reply to BenWilson,
It’s actually borderline whether they’re more environmentally friendly than a petrol scooter.
True, but around here I see people tearing into traffic on two stroke petrol scooters and various tradesfolk on tricycles fitted with lawnmower engines, and then I see the electric versions. I know whose contribution to the air I breathe I prefer. I also suspect the battery technology will improve with time, as it will with electric cars. Petrol prices are only going upwards...
-
Hard News: Staying Alive, in reply to George Darroch,
e writer took cues from this column and Transportblog
Yeah, I did think it read like the author had been following the discussion here.
-
The Herald on Sunday is on board, too:
Cyclists, in particular those who commute, are not obscure oddball hobbyists; they are the trailblazers of a transport future whom we should applaud and accommodate.
Amen!
-
Hard News: Staying Alive, in reply to Yamis,
PS, if we are going to constantly compare Auckland with other cities in terms of road layout it would be useful to
Other cities provide examples and ideas for what can be done. Clearly they can't be simply imported wholesale and plonked onto Auckland's roads without adjusting them to suit Auckland's particular situation.
or else like those in China where the cyclists do their thing down their separated tree lined lane and the cars do their thing in theirs.
Not quite. Urban Chinese roads of any significance (with the exception of older roads, which sometimes, as in the case of Tianjin's Wu Da Dao, may not be suited to this for historic reasons) are divided into a 主路/zhǔlù and 辅路/fǔlù. The zhǔlù is the main road running down the middle for motor vehicles only. The fǔlù is the separated tree-lined bit running along either side of the main road. The fǔlù contains the cycle lane, but it is also access to parking and housing/businesses/work units/whatever buildings, estates, compounds, etc are there. There are a few short sections where the fǔlù is for cyclists only, but in general it is mixed use. Naturally, almost everybody drives much more slowly down the fǔlù than on the zhǔlù. One thing that helps is that in China it is considered polite for a motorist to give a couple of quick toots to warn cyclists ahead that a car is coming up behind them and they may wish to move over. Rural roads that are wide enough to have a separate cycle lane don't have any kind of zhǔlù/fǔlù distinction, and the cycle lane is market simply by a line of white paint. I don't think this system would work at all in Auckland, although Christchurch could try something similar, considering Beijing's terrain (the city built on a plain next to the hills) is more like Christchurch's.
I have no idea how you'd measure a bicycle:car ration here these days considering the proliferation of electric bicycles, scooters and tricycles, but I doubt it's changed much. Bicycles don't get stuck in traffic jams, after all.
-
Hard News: Staying Alive, in reply to BenWilson,
Flat cities may have different experiences.
Yeah, from what I've seen they're for flat cities. I've ridden my brother in law's electric scooter with my wife on the back up to my father in law's orchard a couple of times, that's up a very slight rise to the base of the mountains, a gain of maybe 20 or 30 metres in altitude. It starts to struggle towards the top. It seems to be fine for zipping around the village and perhaps further distances along the basin floor, though.
Their big advantages on the flat are that you get higher speeds for no effort and they're not pumping out petrol exhaust and noise in the central city (although electricity has to be generated...). I suspect, though, that the battery technology will improve and expand their range and usefulness.
