People are worried about Greenhouse pollution. The polls say so. Yet look at the mid-morning traffic.
1 person per car, many gas guzzler SVU/4WD (the Australian term) or high-octane V8 sports cars.
Australia, has a car culture, people feel superior when they zoom past those faithful souls like me catching a tram to work. They feel superior – look at me in my car. … my flash new sports car or SUV. It shows how much money I owe… sorry have.
Dumb Math: No car EQUALS Inferior, flashy car EQUALS superior
It is a sign of inferiority to use public transport in Australia among many people. The ideal first steps for a married couple here is to buy a unit/house and two cars.
For those men seeking to get married, or at least get a date/friendly; it is the car that is the first step. A Nice car is the ultimate Aussie dream, and these days it’s all the better if you have both bought a unit first. I’m all for wealth education, but most people here are owned by their assets.
One innovation I would like in Australia, UK and America, an Intellectual innovation.
I yearn for the world where a private library, a resource of the mind, or at the very least a library card is more of a status symbol than a car.
Where speaking French is more important than a BMW.
Where eating good food is more important than the car you drive to get there.
A world in short where what you know and how you communicate is more important than how you do.
Flashiest Message, least Innovative to Say
People who show off by public flashiness, generally have the least to contribute.
There are exceptions, country people and people in areas where the government has chosen to break it’s promises on public transport, or better yet, simply promise nothing. I sympathise as in my first job I travelled 3.5-4 hours per day, on a hellish commute, even worse in the wet.
Personally, I use public transport in Melbourne for 90% of my trips from home. I am on a good 20 minutes to the city route, and I don;t go to the suburbs much. When I do, I use a taxi, hire car or car & driver depending on the occasion.
Public Transport innovation
This is what i suggest. Use Public transport for short hops during working hours, and if you are on a reliable AND safe route, to & from work.
But the governements have to begin to take responsibility for innovation in public transport. Not another fried chicken innovation like ticketing, but delivery of clean, safe and regular services that delivers citizens to work in a timely fashion. t would be great if we could get some comfort as well. See Frankfurt or Paris underground or Austrian trams, for a good example, in our global comparative research for the Global innovation Review 2007
The blockage to Innovation: I want it ALL …AND NOW!
Look the I want everything and I want it NOW (and CHEAP please) consumer culture has got to stop.
This is a choice. I like to be well-dressed and well-fed rather than drive around for show. Some people love music, others videos, others art. We have to be more selective rather than wanting INSTANT everything, INSTANT now.
And we should by discerning well-built goods that last, not disposable goods. If you are a car fanatic, fair enough. If you live & breath Cars, and watch Top gear as your guide to life, fair enough. But consider others, and consider how much is to impress people who are not even your friends. Are all these fancy cars for car fanatics or perhaps… tossers who want to toss-off…
If I see another baby boomer in a gas guzzler I think I will choke. Tax them back to The Stone Age. It is no longer appropriate. Sell it.
Of course if my wife and I move further out to the country, something we’ve discussed, then it will be necessary to be car owners again. But it will be for necessity, not impressing people who doubtless don’t like us much anyway.
Drive (or Tram or Bike!) safely!
Christopher.
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