Bangkok Traffic

I recently reported that I was in Thailand for a couple for weeks a couple of weeks ago, and I noticed a sign for Bangkok (BKK) car free day, however the rest of the text was in Thai so I was unable to ascertain when it was. This sign intrigued me because BKK is one of those cities that doesn’t hide that its a city, traffic is a huge problem there. Imagining Bangkok without cars for a minute let alone a day is a refreshing thought, I wished for it often as I wandered on her network of roads and streets and allies. Food and fumes merge in the streets of BKK, At night the gutters become cafes and through the day the treacherous sidewalks become swamps in monsoonal rains. People live and eat in the streets, they walk, sleep, beg, buy, converse in between the cars out under the smog filled sky.

I have since found out that Car-Free day was facilitated by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) and actually happens every year on the 20th of September and this year there is mixed reports about it success, some say it had no effect what so ever, as even BMA staff still hopped in their cars to get to work. Cyclist Sopon Benjakosonpreecha who cycles 60 kms to and from work everyday, reported to the Daily Xpress / Asia New Network that it had made little impact as people were still in there cars and few people participated in car-free day.

Bangkok is the country’s biggest pollute, in 2008 alone there were 2.5 million new cars in, and Bangkok residents make an average 12 million trips by car in the capital each day, which contributes to the average speed of 10km per hour in peak hour. However the Bangkok Mass Transit System (BTS) is an efficient way to get around Bangkok, and I was often perplexed that people even bother driving in a city that has a walking speed faster than the driving speed.

It would be an amazing feat if Bangkok Car Free day took off, and although after 3 years it doesn’t seem apparent that change is on the horizon, there is hope and history says that ‘from little things big things grow.’

Brisbane City

Brisbane has a population of 1.8 million, with an annual growth rate of 2.2%, the city has been growing steadily for many years and it is the opinion of many ‘Brisbanites’ that the population growth rate far outgrows the infrastructure to support it. Although it does seem that Brisbane City Council are implementing some quality strategies to deal with our increased population. Although I believe Brisbane has a long way to go to be considered sustainable, Brisbane City Council (BCC) certainly are trying, amidst all of their bureaucracy and conservatism. Like many cities one of the main challenges that BCC must face is traffic congestion and transport issues and although currently we aren’t seeing too much in the way of traffic alleviation, BCC has some transport strategies that should improve our transport issue in a few years to come, including;

• Creating Brisbane as a walkable city, with improved pedestrian amenity.

• Increasing cycle paths and improving bicycle infrastructure.

• Introduction of a bicycle hire scheme similar to Vélib is Paris.

• Increasing public transport including buses, trains and ferries.

• Introduction of a new mass transit system.

Although these initiatives will be welcome I believe for my city to become sustainable it will need to increase urban density and establish additional Transit Oriented Developments (TODs). TODs are high density, mixed use developments that are situated along public transport corridors or in public transport hubs. They are designed to reduce reliance on private vehicles and encourage sustainable transportation.

The South East Queensland (SEQ)Regional Plan is attempting to respond the urban density issue by increasing the number of TODs, developing around nodes and corridors and ‘prioritising locations with high levels of transit service frequency’.

The SEQ Regional Plan aims to;

‘concentrate urban development in the Urban Footprint and redirect an increased proportion of new growth to existing communities. Containing urban growth pressures will preserve the region’s landscape, open spaces and farmland, and provide significant environmental quality and health benefits. Toward Q2: Tomorrow’s Queensland makes a commitment to preserving land for nature conservation and public recreation.’

During community consultation BCC also discovered that a imperative concern for Brisbanites was access to food in the city (which is personally one of my favourite city topics). One of BCC’s Natural Environment goals in Living in Brisbane 2026 is Food in the City which include various initiatives. Food in the City is also a key component of both the CitySmart and BCCs Green Choice Gardening awareness raising campaigns. On the BCC I Green Heart BNE ‘Green Heart CitySmart’ website it  states;

Council’s vision is that Brisbane has a network of community gardens and city farms where residents can grow and access healthy and affordable food.

According to BCC at this stage there are 9 community gardens within Council’s park estate, however they aim to increase this and other sustainability community activities in the coming years. According to BCC, community members can get involved with existing community gardens and apply for a number grants, including;

• Community Grants Program.

• Lord Mayor’s Sustainability Grant.

• Environmental Grants Program.

• Senior Citizens Grants Program.

• Community Support Funding Program.

• Creative Sparks Grants Program.

If you would like to learn more about Brisbane City Council’s Food in the City initiatives check out the new Community Gardens and City Farms section of the I Green Heart BNE ‘Green Heart CitySmart website.

You could also check out two of Brisbane’s Inner City City Farms including Northy Street City Farm and Spiral Gardens.

In 2005 Brisbane City Council released Our shared vision – Living in Brisbane 2026 for the future of Brisbane. This document was developed by Neighbourhood Planning forums and community consultation activities. The Our shared vision – Living in Brisbane 2026 for the future of Brisbane document states that;

The clear message from this consultation is that, for residents and visitors, our friendliness, our green open spaces and outdoor climate are the keys to enjoying Brisbane. Planning a sustainable future for Brisbane relies on our beingresponsible today – responsible in our care of the environment, our culture, our society and our prosperity. Right now, although water is our most pressing challenge within an environmental context, we must change the way we currently think and behave in response to all of our challenges. We want you to enjoy the benefits of living in one of the world’s most livable cities and to pass on those and other benefits to our future generations of residents and visitors.

The key themes of this document are;

• Friendly, safe city

• Smart, prosperous city

• Clean, green city

• Active, healthy city

• Well-designed, subtropical city

• Vibrant, creative city

• Accessible, connected city

• Regional and world city

Our shared vision – Living in Brisbane 2026 for the future of Brisbane links with Brisbane’s 2026 Masterplan which outlines the strategy Brisbane will use this to make Brisbane Australia’s most sustainable city by 2026.

Key components of the Vision of Brisbane’s 2026 Masterplan are;

• An integrated public transport network.

• Pedestrian and cycle friendly streets and spaces.

• Welcoming urban spaces that demonstrate sustainability, innovation, vibrancy and excellence in design.

• Strong integration between the public domain and transport and private development.

• An identifiable character derived from a subtropical landscape, significant views and vistas, public art and built and cultural heritage.

• Promotion of the river as the memorable centre of the city.

• Planning that recognises and reinforces our identity and unique qualities.

• An appropriate relationship between the core and the frame.

• A high–density core of tall buildings with flexibility in design control that allows each building to respond appropriately to its environment.

• A safe and welcoming environment.

• A composition of uses that ensures a sustainable and interesting city centre.

• A tourist and event–friendly city.

If we can go by the recommendations and reports Brisbane is going to be a wonderfully green city in a few years to come… but I guess in the meantime, I’ll have to keep day dreaming about the day when I walk along and not see singular people sitting in cars built for quintets and I’ll just have to imagine that out on the edges trees are not being felled to make way for big houses, to accommodate us and our big TVs and our big SUVs.