Prof B (Matthew Burke)

Most of England’s smart motorways are poor value for money, official reports find AA says long-awaited evaluations show schemes are a ‘catastrophic waste of time, money and effort’

Most bicycle infrastructure projects have a cost-benefit ratio above four. Most motorways are lucky to get near two. Here's more evidence nothing's changing. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

That's a LOT of bikes in a year... japantoday.com/category/cri...

I love the book Carter. I've been in this game 25 years and no-one has put together a better book to quickly help develop new walk, bike and transit advocates. Well done and thank you.

Hi #bikesky folks. I'm the new CEO of Bicycle Queensland and more can I just say this new book is a cracker. Thanks Carter and the folks at #islandpress. #transport #advocacy #bikes #transportplanning

Greetings everyone. A quick FYI that as of this week I am the new CEO of Bicycle Queensland, our state's largest cycling organisation. We represent our 12,000 members. Dream job for me! I get to be a full-time sustainable transport activist. 😆

Wuhu Old Town, Anhui Province, China. These photos are from the middle of the day in 95 degree heat. But by night you can't move for all the people. More proof all people want places to walk, wander and promenade away from cars. #wuhu #anhui #pedestrians #walking #urbanplanning #urbanism

An EV road user charge is looming. Could it slam the brakes on Australia’s clean car transition? The revenue from fuel excise is falling but it’s not only because of EVs, which make up less than 2% of cars on the roads

A plea from me to add equity to any road user charge in Australia, and to ensure the legislation allows for congestion charging in future!

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Thirty years of struggle coming closer to an end ...

Column | More Americans are car poor as they misjudge trade-in math and pile on debt More than 1 in 4 consumers owe more on their car loans than the vehicle is worth, while car payments of $1,000 have reached a record high.

Australians make similar mistakes en masse. Desire, created by car/SUV/pick-up advertisers, embedded in culture, then sold. Excessive #transport costs can be self inflicted.

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"More Americans are car poor as they misjudge trade-in math and pile on debt"

www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

Pro-Palestine protest group says ‘we will see them in court’ after police block Sydney Harbour Bridge march Sydney-based group say weekend demonstration ‘must go ahead’ despite police knocking back application

Ah, the politics of automobility in Australia's car owning democracy. The NSW Government won't shut the Sydney Harbour Bridge for a one-off massive march. Every car is sacred.

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

Siang Lu wins Miles Franklin award for Ghost Cities, ‘a genuine landmark in Australian literature’ Author, who takes home $60,000, says finding out he won Australia’s most esteemed literary prize left him ‘in such shock that I lost all feeling in my hands and legs’

Brilliant book that #urbanists will love! Now a major prize winner. Well deserved.
#booksky #urbanism www.theguardian.com/books/2025/j...

An unnecessary swim centre for the Brisbane 2032 Olympics is now costed at AUD$1.2 Billion (US$750m). It duplicates the 2018 Commonwealth Games Aquatic Centre already at Southport.

No 2032 Olympic transport or urban legacy plan in sight, let alone works. GC airport light rail link still unfunded.

Huh? Light Rail would have added a new bridge over or tunnel under the Brisbane River. Metro buses were able to run on the Victoria Bridge after only minor reinforcement. That's a huge cost saving to this project. Please be truthful - this 'solution' was a much cheaper alternative.

Yeah, still a long way to go. But it's a day to celebrate. Politically hard to make this scale of change in Brisbane. Yes, the Northside and Westside both need a similar step-change review of their networks. Let's see how much love these Southside changes get (after a few months' implementation)...

Great new bus network for Brisbane began today. Some teething problems, including the Translink online journey planner being overwhelmed in morning peak hour. (The app was working well at 9am for me so all should be ok now). We'll hear from the angry but it's a huge improvement on what was before.

Australian journalist @laurentomasi.bsky.social keeping her cool when clearly and very deliberately shot by an LAPD officer with no provocation. Tough as teak!

The #trbam committees locked over a thousand of the rest-of-the-world's best transport experts into helping solve the USA's transport problems. A serious loss.

Interesting-looking new study on people with high-carbon lifestyles doi.org/10.1016/j.er...

Sometimes the walk to a #PedBikeTrans walking and cycling seminar is even better than the event itself. Great night last night.

So the 25-cent petrol excise cut promised by Australia's federal opposition failed to help them win outer-suburban seats. It may just have helped them lose more seats in the inner-city. The politics of automobility might just be shifting in Australia... #auspol #mobilty #transport #urbanism

Ha. Hadn't seen that one...

They do have their fuel inefficiency standards policy to keep polluting clunkers on Australian roads too, I guess.

The LNP Oz election slogan is 'Back on Track'. But they have no detailed transport policy other than their tax cut for six months on petroleum fuels, pushing up road congestion. There's no rail policy. No cycle tracks. Not even hiking trails. I'm one disappointed transport professor. #auspol

The worse traffic gets, the more fast food people eat The longer commutes get, the more people stop and get fast food on the way home. Which means ending gridlock could have far-reaching public health implications.

"...for every 30-second increase in traffic delay per mile traveled, there was a 1% increase in visits to fast food restaurants. While that may not seem like a lot, the researchers estimate that over a year, it amounts to about 1.2 million more fast food meals in Los Angeles."

World’s first 3D-printed train station building planned by JR West Japan is home to a wide variety of train stations, from tiny countryside sheds to sprawling urban complexes, stations with their own wineries and ones with giant ancient relics whose eyes glow. It’s g...

And so it begins...
japantoday.com/category/tec...

Someone made a Wiley E. Coyote style painted wall to see if Tesla’s autopilot would detect it and well…

New podcast alert. Why are things not improving for active and public transport on the fringes of Australian cities? I spent a week living in the City of Moreton Bay recently. Some of the key infrastructure is actually in place. But policy is lacking. Hear more via the link. tinyurl.com/4uzk2pxs

U.S. DOT Orders Review of All Grants Related to Green Infrastructure, Bikes — Streetsblog USA Now U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is coming for our bike lanes!

Oh dear...

This can't be about budget savings given the tiny sums involved.

It's not about congestion busting given space-efficiency of bikes.

Just stupid.

"U.S. DOT Orders Review of All Grants Related to Green Infrastructure, Bikes" - usa.streetsblog.org/2025/03/12/b...

We're okay at my place. Brisbane may have averted a major flooding event. But as usual, our Bikeway infrastructure will be a mess after Tropical Cyclone Alfred.

‘Startup Nation’ Groups Say They’re Meeting Trump Officials to Push for Deregulated ‘Freedom Cities’ The architects of projects like Próspera are drafting legislation to create US cities that would be free from federal regulations.

The alt right has spent years conspiracy theorizing about the evils of walkable cities, when the oligarchs they idealize are planning in plain site to build entire cities into technofascist playgrounds where every aspect of your life is commoditized.

www.wired.com/story/startu...