Close roads for kids says cyclist.

[Cycleops]

Jason Kenny says roads should be closed do children can play outside.
"I really believe in this," he tells BBC News. "I grew up in the countryside, I had complete freedom, especially on my bicycle."
Good idea?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-49675073

 

[uphillstruggler]

agreed

We have a couple of kids in our road who like to play out in our road but Im always worried as cars seem to like racing up our one way, single lane, dog legged Victorian terrace road.

its also interesting that one of the items says that a side effect of closing the roads is the adult and older residents actually enjoy the social side of the closures too.

it reminds me of the outrage when the roads were closed to cars in London around Little Holland, thinking it would drive trade away from the shops but it had the reverse if the article I read was accurate.

 

[Drago]

I'm all for it. Bikes were on the roads before cars, and will be on the road when cars are gone.

The cars are the dinosaurs of the Antrhropecene, and their extinction will be equally abrupt when the time comes. That being the case, we should be doing so now while we have control of the process and the transition can be considered and orderly, not waiting u til the collapse is sudden and brings financial and societal chaos.

 

[Slick]

Yeah, I would go for that as a good idea. Anything that gets em moving can only be a good thing and if it means restricting car travel for a time, then even better. I've been in London all week and have come to the conclusion that something definitely has to give.

 

[Cycleops]

I'm sure there'll be opposition from car owners who will effectively not have access to their vehicles for a large part of the day plus fears their pride and joy might get damaged.
Car ownership in a city is a liability anyway so this might tempt them into car hire schemes or other alternatives.

 

[roadrash]

this is stated in the article..
.
"We try to do it every single month.

"On Sundays from two until four we shut off the streets

then the last line in the article says .
."What about the person who is coming back home with £150 worth of shopping and finds they can't get their car down their road?"

I suppose they just have to do the shopping during the 2 hours the street is closed

 

[Drago]

That's like Velo Midlands. People were bitching they were trapped in their houses "all day...".

Erm, the roads were closed from 0700 to 1140.

 

[roadrash]

That's like Velo Midlands. People were bitching they were trapped in their houses "all day...".

Erm, the roads were closed from 0700 to 1140.

if they was trapped in the house, I take it they all had their feet removed , was it surgically or did they just happen to drop off before 7.00 that day

 

[MontyVeda]

I've just been looking at some of my childhood haunts on Street View and noticed a lot of those streets now have speed humps all the way along them... all because people can't drive at a sensible speed in residential areas. It's a shame and no wonder parents are wanting to close streets to cars altogether.

Yesterday my mother was saying that one of my great nephews, now aged about 9 can go out and play on his own, but the other, aged about 7 is still a bit too young. When I and my brother were those ages we went everywhere unsupervised (late 70s) and were specifically told not to come home 'til dinner or tea time. How the perceptions of what ages we're allowed out on our own have changed.

 

[HMS_Dave]

As a motorist myself id have no problem with this. People need to break their emotional attachment to cars and see them as a point A to B mode of transport, maybe then motorists will gain more perspective on their means of transport. I did. I accept i ate too much but i don't also believe its a coincidence that i put weight on pretty much every year since passing my test. You start dropping into habits, taking the kids to school in the car, popping to the shops, visiting family not a 20 minute walk away etc... Cars have their place but racing up and residential streets isn't one of them. Let people get out of their houses and enjoy exercise with clean air and without fear of being crushed.

 

[steveindenmark]

A good idea to try.

But will you really get kids away from their computer and phone screens to play in the street?

I doubt it.

 

[roadrash]

yet we have people in the article saying it has been a success

 

[screenman]

A good idea to try.

But will you really get kids away from their computer and phone screens to play in the street?

I doubt it.

I agree, I live quite rural and the number of kids you see out playing is diminishing, despite the number in the village increasing.

 

[annedonnelly]

Definitely. It's a great idea.

One of the main roads in Newcastle city centre is closed on weekends during the summer months. The road divides two busy shopping areas and is used by lots of buses & taxis during the week. When it's closed they are able to set up stalls & kids rides in the road and it joins together the two areas. The buses are re-routed and people seem to cope. I'd love for it to be closed to traffic all week too.

 

[Shut Up Legs]

https://www.theguardian.com/cities/...celona-spain-plan-give-streets-back-residents