Trudy Harrison, the UK Government’s Transport Minister, recently spoke at a mobility conference about the future of personal mobility. In her remarks, she stated that “20th-century thinking centred around private vehicle ownership and towards greater flexibility, with personal choice and low carbon shared transport.” That’s correct, she stated the quiet part out loud and showed a rising number of government officials’ hands.
Harrison went on to commend bike share programmes, e-scooters, and ride-sharing platforms in addition to public transportation. All of them are intended to reduce the amount of carbon the UK emits into the environment. This, like all choices, comes at a price, especially for people who live in rural areas.
Furthermore, 300 Coventry citizens recently showed an interest in giving up their personal automobiles. According to reports, the government would offer a mobility credit worth up to £3,000 in exchange. Since March of this year, 73 cars have been turned in and crushed as part of the mobility credit scheme. This isn’t a joke, but it makes me laugh.
Many Britons are understandably outraged about this. Some have suggested that instead of walking, they should start riding their horse, all in the name of “progress.” Others have linked Harrison’s statement to the government’s planned 2030 ban on internal combustion engines in automobiles. After all, EVs aren’t cheap, so what better way to compel people to use public transit than to price them out of the market?
For a long time, I’ve been criticising some government officials’ elitist intention to outlaw private car ownership. Because the thought that such a thing could exist causes many people’s brains to lash out at the source of such news, I’ve been dubbed a “mad conspiracy theorist,” among other things, for attempting to shed light on this troubling matter. Well, time has proven my point, and people in the United Kingdom are beginning to realise that they may soon be fully reliant on the government for transportation.
You haven’t been paying attention if you think this strategy is only for the UK. Other initiatives, such as a new proposal in Southern California, have been made to make private automobile ownership obsolete. The San Diego Association of Governments’ board of directors has approved the 2021 Regional Transportation Plan, a $160 billion project to improve public transportation in the metropolitan area.
Because that’s a big price tag for such a tiny area, one of the ways officials propose to pay for it is by imposing a per-mile driving fee on residents. Because it was such an unpopular decision, it was put on hold for the time being. However, I have a sneaking suspicion that the driving tax will be reviewed. Critics claim that this, as well as other fines and levies, are intended to eliminate personal automobile ownership for anyone save the wealthy. Similar restrictions are expected to be implemented in other cities, and maybe entire states/territories, across North America and beyond in the near future.
As unappealing as politics can be, if automobile enthusiasts, and really anyone who enjoys travelling where they want, when they want in their own vehicle, don’t start speaking up, our liberties could be severely curtailed in ways that many thought were unthinkable. If nothing is done to stop this push, it will be disastrous for almost everyone.