• Top court confirms UK has broken air pollution law (AirQualityNews)
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• Berlin gets Germany’s first pedestrian law (DeutscheWelle)
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• E-bike maker Cowboy navigates riders around air pollution (Verge)
• Robotic underground bike storage in Japan (TechBurrito)
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In addition to bike parks, of which this robotic example is a good one, automated stacking car parks (above ground) are quite a feature in the larger towns and cities in Japan where space is at a premium. They are of particular use in areas of narrow streets where otherwise it would be impossible to park. You cannot have a car in places like Tokyo unless you have a registered parking/storage place. They are also very quick to use as the driver only goes as far as the entrance before leaving the vehicle. I understand that you can now call your car forward for retrieval on your phone as you approach the facility, so saving time in collecting it.
I can only assume that the British Government are shaking in their boots because a foreign court wants to send them a letter. What a waste of time and resources.
We know the issues, we know the solutions, they are being enacted (our electric car take up is comparable to that of our neighbours and buses and trains are rapidly decarbonising too). Could it go faster? Yes, but the market will take care of that soon enough.
There is a robotic bicycle parking system called BIKETOWER at several railway stations in Czech R.
https://www.welovecycling.com/wide/2019/09/24/robotics-could-be-parking-your-bikes/
It seems you don’t necessarily need a very dense urban population for them to make sense, just a sufficiently large demand for bicycle parking in one location. Riding a bicycle is seen socially as a normal thing to do there, as it is in many continental countries, and is further supported by an excellent network of bicycle routes. So there is a high demand for bicycle parking at a railway station.
@ActaNonVerba
Air quality is not about CO2, it’s about other pollutants. The requirement is not for 30 years in the future, it is for now. The requirement has existed for a long time, and was devised before anyone seriously envisaged widespread electrification for the purposes of decarbonisation. So, “wait for electrification” does not cut the mustard as a response. If it does indeed come to pass that we electrify the transport system, it will make a large contribution to air quality. But there are other significant sources of poor air quality which also need to be taken into account: building heating systems, tyre and brake abrasion, industry, agricultural practices, etc.
Urban air quality has experienced large improvements recently. The main source is cleaning up fossil fuel engines and, in some places, traffic restraint. Ironically the EU made it harder by messing up the Euro 6 diesel light vehicle standards, so decelerating the improvement that was coming naturally from the vehicle replacement cycle as it climbed the ladder of the previous standard upgrades.
Meanwhile, the government was expected to bring in such restraints on traffic and use of old engines in sensitive location as would achieve the air quality standards, the methods already in use, but it didn’t. In fact it largely washed its hands of it, gave it to the cities, and didn’t give them very much money to achieve it.
The court result is not a non-event, though it was a foregone conclusion. The court has the power to fine us, and I think it will be difficult to avoid paying. Other countries also fall short and likely will also be fined.