Along for the Ride #260
the wheels on the bus go round and round
Heya friends, happy Friday!
It’s been a few weeks of feeling like everything is really busy, despite it being February, when objectively we should all be allowed to move at the pace of snail (particularly given the current political, economic, and social vibes). I keep reflecting on how capitalism keeps people busy enough such that they aren’t able to organize against the oppressive systems that hold us collectively back, and that feels accurate enough (at least for me). I keep saying things to friends like “the wheels on the bus go round and round” when they ask me how I am which is a nod to our own sense of resilience, the cyclical nature of geopolitics, and an opportunity to references public transit in everyday conversation.
If you’re feeling the heavy weight of it all, my only suggestion is croissants (or any other form of small joy) and carving out the time (even if only a few moments) to focus on anything other than the small slice of capitalism pie you find yourself responsible for. It will be waiting for you tomorrow, I promise.
And with that…… news!
The CEO of Swyft Cities wrote an op-ed about the unintended consequences of the AV industry (and further entrenching our dependency on cars). “While self-driving cars and robotaxis were once hailed as a solution to climate-harming congestion, they may actually make the climate situation worse. I believe they will have major unintended negative consequences with second- and third-order effects that will seriously undermine climate goals.”
Madrid’s Low Emission Zone (LEZ)
Madrid’s LEZ started in 2018, went through a slew of drama, and has finally completed and covers the entire Metropolitan area. This article details recommendations for other cities looking to create similar policy incentives to improve air quality and decrease congestion.
The success of London’s Elizabeth Line
I was just gushing over dinner last night about how much I love the Elizabeth Line. And the Guardian is right there with me: “Now accounting for one in seven national rail journeys, the east-west cross-London railway has smashed forecasts and remoulded the travel habits and urban geography of the south-east.” One in seven!!
This title is slightly misleading as it appears DOGE is targeting many Federal departments without concern. However the NHTSA, which regulates autonomous vehicles as well as auto OEMs, is losing about 10 percent of its workforce through firings and buyout.
Tesla plans to launch free AV service in California
Is it ironic that Tesla’s best chance at launching AVs is in a State that at this point hates Elon’s guts? I’m curious if Muck thinks launching a robotaxi service in California would even lead to any ridership given the dark hole he’s dug for himself.
Side note: Tesla swallowed their pride in China and changed the name of Full Self-Driving (FSD) to “Autopilot Automatic Assisted Driving on Urban Roads” (lol) to allow them to launch the service (The Drive). The NYTs has a overly optimistic article about Tesla’s future in China here.
Procurement and infrastructure costs
“Why is building and maintaining infrastructure so expensive in the United States? We collect new project-level data on infrastructure spending and new survey data on how the states procure these projects.. We find that two important inputs in the procurement process appear to particularly drive costs: (1) the capacity of the DOT procuring the project and (2) the lack of competition in the market for government construction contracts. We quantify the role of capacity with administrative data that links individual personnel with infrastructure contracts in California. We show that higher quality engineers deliver projects at a lower cost, while retirement shocks slow project timelines and increase costs.”
“If you had to guess the leading cause of death for children and young people around the world, what would you say? Malaria perhaps? Pneumonia? Suicide? They’re all high up there, but no, it’s road accidents incidents.”
The capitalism got me good this week and there are no jobs :(. If we want the job board to thrive, please send em in folks!
This past weekend friends and I visited margate by the sea. Margate is known for being a cute lil seaside town a short train ride for London, and my friends and I bopped around town, floated in and out of vintage shops, and ate some A+ fish and chips.
Like everybody else I’m watching Severance and White Lotus. Severance makes me feel all the feelings related to work life balance (lol), while White Lotus makes me wonder if there’s a world where a person can accumulate wealth without becoming shitty (so far the verdict is not looking great!!!!).
That’s all from me. Have a beautiful weekend friends.
Sarah
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