Jonathan Gifford wrote:
> Further to Dave Wetzel's comment on Venice.
> As a cognitively dissonant hard core libertarian car lover and city loving
> pedestrian and bicyclist, I found Venice ... magical. The absence of
> motorized wheeled vehicles was great. Quiet. My favorite vessels were the
> DHL express delivery boat and the construction barge holding two huge cement
> trucks.
> I'm not sure it's a good model for future cities, since it's now mostly a
> tourist destination. But it certainly gives pause.
http://www.trg.soton.ac.uk/research/TVNetwork/reports/report3.pdf
Transport Visions Network: Report 3 para 179 and 180.
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A more radical vision is to adapt to the prevailing [climate
change] processes. Areas that are susceptible to flooding are
permanently flooded and buildings adapted to accommodate raised water
levels and water-based transport. Rowing boats, canoes or electric boats
are used for transport. The ground floor of buildings is left to the
elements whilst ensuring the foundations are secure. In the novel
Angela's Ashes set at the end of the nineteenth century a poor Irish
family lived in a house that was susceptible to flooding. In the winter
they called it Italy downstairs (after Venice) and they lived upstairs.
In the summer the downstairs drained of water and they went
downstairs.
"Britain could be awash with mini Venices providing potential
tourism attractions. Take a gondolier journey through Worcester or York!
Waterside apartments would also provide highly desirable residential
property. Far from being bizarrely futuristic this is a return to a
traditional British landscape as for centuries the fenlands of Eastern
England were inhabited island communities. The only difference is that
water management/engineering technology would avoid community severance
and communications problems."
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At the time (and particularly as a York resident) I thought it was
something of an extreme vision.
--
Richard G. Clegg,
Networks & NonLinear Dynamics Group,
Dept. of Maths, Uni. of York.
http://www.richardclegg.org/
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