Grid Lock

[TheTool]

I am a northerner and i sometimes work down south and everytime i come through douglas of a morning it seems the traffic is getting worse.

 

Every car seems to have one person in it, the way things are going instead of 9 to 5 work hours for the office lot its going to be 10 to 6 lol.

 

Don't you think the government should be looking at the infrastructure of our roads before any more houses are built it really is getting dangerous in places.

[ans]

I think the responsibility lies with people themselves to make better use of public transport and their own two feet/wheels. I know people that drive less than half a mile to work who take longer to find a park than it would take to walk there and back.

[When Skies Are Grey]

How about relocating some of the business North or South aswell....or proper enforcement of a park and ride facility.

[WilDDog]

I am a northerner and i sometimes work down south and everytime i come through douglas of a morning it seems the traffic is getting worse.

 

Every car seems to have one person in it, the way things are going instead of 9 to 5 work hours for the office lot its going to be 10 to 6 lol.

 

Don't you think the government should be looking at the infrastructure of our roads before any more houses are built it really is getting dangerous in places.

 

You could always leave earlier and try and beat the rush, but I know what you're getting at.

I don't think they can do much about infrastructure of the Islands roads to be honest.

[Sasha]

3 cars doth not a gridlock make

[Minxie]

I used to walk to work some mornings as it only takes me 15 minutes, but since having children nursery runs in the morning mean that I have to take the car (although I have 6 months off for maternity leave at the moment so don't have to even think about traffic these mornings yay )

[FCMR]

Make car drivers pay to park on the streets of Douglas, Van Drivers have to. And those caught changing the times on parking disks should get a ban, bring in wheel clamping and tow away.

[FCMR]

How about relocating some of the business North or South aswell....or proper enforcement of a park and ride facility.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Relocate Tynwald down South, bit shady down south, so they would feel at home

[WilDDog]

Make car drivers pay to park on the streets of Douglas, Van Drivers have to. And those caught changing the times on parking disks should get a ban, bring in wheel clamping and tow away.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I don't think parking was much to do with the point the tool was making.

[ans]

Well if they were too cheap to pay for parking, they'd not drive....

[Sasha]

We pay enough for our petrol and tax, to be told we should pay more for the simple "privilege"of parking up is a bit rich. I doubt it would do the shops and other businesses of Douglas much good either.

This "problem" (can't say I've noticed, but I'm not a 9-5er so maybe avoid the worst) is one created by too many cars in a place not designed for them, it isn't our fault the powers that be have allowed free building and growth without allowing for basics.

The amusing thing is the reason behind people getting all het up about it and wanting to reduce the traffic; it's purely because they want to be able to drive and park their car more easily.

[matty]

I've heard that we have one of the highest numbers of cars per population in Europe.

 

I do think it's ridiculous the amount of cars coming into town with just a driver and no passengers.

 

I beleive that in one of the far eastern cities (perhaps Singapore) that there is a scheme where cars with odd numbered registrations can drive into the centre on one day, and even numbers the next - this to me seems quite a reasonable idea for over here.

 

Maybe the government could offer a tax incentive for people, or even companies who can prove that they car share? - That might be able to reduce some of the traffic on the roads.

 

I also beleive that running a small diesel train between Port Erin and Douglas (with fairs well subsidised) could help releive the morning congestion. I'm sure it wouldn't take that much of an investment to re lay the tracks from Douglas to Peel, and onto Ramsey.

 

The problem would be getting the vast majority of the population to adopt something like this - we're all becoming lazy and are used to having cars as a tool of convenience rather than a privelige.

 

I live in Governors Hill and I'm disgusted by the lack of consideration of other road users by mothers taking their kids to school who double park near the Cat With No Tail - this makes the road more dangerous for drivers as well as people crossing the road, there is a parking area at the back of the school where they could drop off their kids in safety if they weren't so bl**dy lazy!

[happy camper]

I used to get the bus to work in Douglas and they were always packed. One of them used to regularly drive past us without stopping because it was full. It's not always laziness that people don't use public transport.

 

Don't forget those who have to bring in a load of stuff with them to and from work - laptops, files, etc! Not so easy to take on the bus/pile on their backs.

 

Matty - ISTR the odd number/even number thing was tried somewhere like Greece or Italy. Those that could afford it bought two cars and drove them on alternate days!

[germann]

Matty - ISTR the odd number/even number thing was tried somewhere like Greece or Italy.  Those that could afford it bought two cars and drove them on alternate days!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

That was tried in central Athens for a few years. And it filled the streets with even more cars, many of which were far from road worthy. If it was tried over here, the only people to benefit would be Laxey Garage & people selling 50 quid bangers in the Courier!

[Slim]

There's two things that could instantly sort our traffic problems in douglas:

 

1) Start the schools at 8am not 9am. This is how it's done in France, and it simply works. You take the slow school traffic out of the peak time. This also works for most working parents, as they can drop their kids off, then go to work in time. The fact that many of our schools are on the perimeter of douglas compounds the problem for commuters.

 

2) Impose a rule of one car per household. This is how it's done in Bermuda, and it works. Most people ride scooters there, and riding a scooter is a far better experience when there are fewer cars.