this post was submitted on 03 Jul 2025
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Fuck Cars

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[–] [email protected] 38 points 1 day ago (26 children)

Maybe instead of roads designed for 80, set to 60, and reduced to 40, and then speed-camera’d, they could (get this) build roads that encourage drivers to follow the limit.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 day ago (2 children)

On the one hand, you are right and that is the ultimate solution. On the other hand it will cost millions to redesign one road whereas the cameras cost thousands to operate. The cameras can be used as a band aid solution but when the road is due for repaving or rehabilitation, it should be redesigned.

There could be some middle ground by adding those flappy sticks to narrow the lane and make turns sharper, requiring slower speeds, at intersections until the road can be properly rehabilitated.

Unfortunately it's just too expensive to properly fix and redesign every road in the city. Even the posterchild of safe streets, The Netherlands, didn't get safe streets overnight, they did the above strategy of making streets safer when they were due to be rehabilitated.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

Definitely need some speed bumps on that stretch of road, all along Parkside. I really don't understand why some have already not been installed.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Speed bumps are definitely a no-go on Parkside. The emergency services (at least Toronto Fire) takes issue with speed bumps slowing down response times, and the TTC is also a big opponent to speed bumps being put up on their bus routes which the 80 Queensway operates down it.

There was a plan in the works to narrow the street to 2-3 lanes which would force traffic to slow down, especially if the lanes are narrower too, with bike lanes also coming in. It’s too bad the changes are dead since the Supreme Mayor of Toronto made legislative changes that effectively killed the major changes to the street

[–] [email protected] 2 points 10 hours ago (1 children)

Some speed bumps are designed to specifically accommodate emergency vehicles as most emergency vehicles will have a wider axle width than regular cars and trucks.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 hours ago

Is that why they're sometimes a weird size?!?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Ugh, I fucking cannot stand the excuse of "it's too expensive". God I fucking hate monetary based economics.

We have the material resources in abundance. We have the manpower and capability of doing so. We just don't because we treat stupid, imaginary tokens of social value as a limiting factor. It's so fucking ass-backwards. If the imaginary tokens are limiting what we are capable of accomplishing then we should change the way those tokens function so we can actually achieve progress instead of limiting ourselves so a few owning class fuckwits can maintain their obscene lifestyles and control over what is or isn't possible.

There could be some middle ground by adding those flappy sticks to narrow the lane and make turns sharper

My city tried these. Every intersection they were placed all ended up broken within a month by people not paying attention and driving from habit. Now there are just nubs on the ground where they used to be as a reminder of how negligent and apathetic drivers are in my region.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 day ago (2 children)

Its too expensive is more than just an excuse. Good luck convincing a city council to go way into debt upgrading every single road all at once. The people building the road want to be paid, council needs the dollars to pay them and they only have so much. Short of redesigning the entire economy and function of the country, we can't redesign or fix the roads without money.

What we can do is slowly improve one road at a time with more reasonable spending, for example making significant redesigns when the road is due for rehabilitation instead of just hiring a company to copy and paste new asphalt and paint. It will inflate rehab costs but the improvements will be worth it and save more money over time.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

If I understand correctly, you're misunderstanding his frustration. He doesn't need an explanation of how the situation plays out in the current economic system. He's frustrated that the resources are available to fix the problem but the current economic system is flawed and doesn't efficiently apply these resources.

Not only does it fail to be efficient, it's being exploited.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Short of redesigning the entire economy and function of the country,

Yea, that's kinda the entire point I'm getting at.

If "duh economy" is preventing us from progressing, then we need to change how the economy works. I don't care about the flimsy excuses that are predicated by the false assumption that we can't change the system.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 15 hours ago

I'm totally down for a new economic system, but I don't see it happening tomorrow, and in the meantime we're stuck with this mess. If we can't try to make our streets a little safer until after the revolution, well, that's also a problem.

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