W0mbat-bug - 🟉✮🟉

Cars vs Accessible Worlds

Alright, let me talk about one thing in terms of accessibility in science fiction settings - and Solarpunk specifically - that also has more than one side to it: Cars and accessibility. Because it is more complicated than you'd thing.

See: The fact that our world is so car centric really, really hinders accessibility. Wide streets are a hindrance for even normal pedastrians, cyclists and so on. If I want to get from A to B, and the route crosses a street, and there is only a traffic light every like 500 meters, it means tat I usually need either to risk my life or take the long way around to get there. And that is a fucking bother even when you are healthy and can easily take that long way around. And the more car centric a society is, the worse the issue becomes. Here in Germany it is a lot easier still to cross a street than in many places in the US.

And of course this gets a lot worse if you are disabled. Be it that you just cannot walk that far. Or if you are blind and cannot even see in what direction you could go for the next traffic light. Or if you are hard of hearing or deaf, you might be more in danger of being surprised by a car. (And that is without going into how electric cars being so fucking quiet makes stuff even more dangerous.) And, you know, neurodivergent people might also just struggle with the fucking noise that is created by roads and is often inescapable in big cities.

And of course even outside of the environmental issues, the constant presence of cars is also a health risk. Not just because of the risk of accidents, but also due to the pollution and how it interacts. Even if we all were driving electric cars, there would still be all those microplastics created by tires and streets and stuff.

So, really. We do need to move away from car centric infrastructure to make our lives healthier and to make the world more accessible for disabled people too.

BUT...

But there is the issue that some disabled people still might be in need to use some sort of personal transportation device that can cover both short and large distances, because for one reason or another public transport just does not work and cannot work for them.

For example someone with severe anxiety issues, or someone who will be easily suffering from sensory overwhelm. There might be other issues, too. Just some folks will always need something like cars.

And of course there is also the fact that stuff like emergency services will still need streets accessible to cars. Because the emergency services will just not get around using something like cars to get to all the places they might be needed.

And this... makes things complicated. Because infrastructure should not be car centric, no. But it needs to be accessible by cars - and be it just for emergency services.

This is just something that I would love to see more talked about especially within the Solarpunk sphere.

The names of 11, 500 children killed by Israeli forces as of February 2024!

jewishvoiceforpeace

Global Strike on April 15th

Link

This is unconscionable. (more)

April 15th: Global Strike

Bisan has called for a global strike on April 15th

"*April 15 is a day of global strike*.. No schools, no movement, no work, no electronic payment, no gas stations. Make more noise and disturb the peace of terrorist politicians in America and IsraHell."

!!EMERGENCY FUNDS!!

Recently I have been very sick from spending a lot of time on the streets, enduring cold and this worsened my health, I was afraid this would happen, and it did. I have to be with oxygen cylinders to be able to breathe better when I got agitated, I am lacking a lot of air, and I am left without breathing, I am going to be discharged but I need to be in a cool, warm place, without humidity, and they ask me to take care of me a lot.

Unfortunately I do not have all the resources to keep me safe, that is why I need your help, whatever you can contribute to me will be of great help.

Fundraiser link

Goal:$518/1900

Thanks and be blessed ❤️

his gfm has been stuck at 420 euros for a week!! please help him out by sharing & donating!!!

I am Mostafa from the Gaza Strip, and I am living the war of genocide and starvation in a tent. We left our home and our shop, which was our only source of income. Now we have been displaced from the north of Gaza to the south, and we no longer have work. Life has worsened for us and has become very difficult. My brothers and I are now unemployed and cannot find food for our day and walk every day. With great difficulty, I hope that you will donate to me, even if it is $5, to save me from https://gofund.me/acd7ad02

https://gofund.me/acd7ad02

https://gofund.me/acd7ad02

🙏

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