Is the media hindering the case for tackling climate change? Or are politicians with low levels of emotional intelligence doing that quite nicely all by themselves?
Manchester’s congestion charging failure, after Edinburgh’s referendum debacle has kicked road-pricing into political oblivion and Gordon Brown now stands accused of congestion charging by stealth with plans to charge for private car-parking spaces.
All of which begs the question – if politicians have been determined to cut car use all along, why did they bother submitting their congestion charging schemes to the public for approval? Did they really expect yes votes? Did politicians fail to understand the degree of public dependency on cars – even from the back-seats of their Ministerial Mondeos?
Asking drivers to approve a rise in the cost of the driving habit is worse than asking turkeys to vote for Christmas -- it’s like asking alcoholics to vote for sobriety. It may be wise, but those who believe their lives are possible only through limitless supplies of any commodity – be it alcohol, time, heroin or roadspace – will not vote to kick the habit. So why ask? Let’s jettison all the tosh about mandates, transparency and building public support for change – that’s what governments should be doing every day.
The plain truth is that policy makers in Manchester have wasted £20 million asking drivers to approve more restricted and expensive driving. The only explanation for such stupidity is a calamitous loss of nerve combined with a naive belief in the power of “education” alone to effect change and a wilful ignorance of human behaviour.
Ken Livingstone, by contrast, outlined his plans in a manifesto and then changed London without further “consultation.” True he was finally kicked out and his charging zones are under pressure – but mostly because he tried to add posh Kensington commuters to the charging zone instead of making sure the original area was working properly. Indeed, everyone who’s tried to get public approval for congestion charging has subsequently been chucked out of office. With a whopping 80% no vote, Manchester council leaders will probably be next. To read more - click here
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