Reducing private vehicle use is an essential part of tackling the climate crisis. Yet despite all the government rhetoric about prioritising public and active transport, cars continue to dominate our streets and our lives. In Sydney, we’ve been left with a tangled mess of expensive, privatised toll roads which have only made congestion worse, while in regional and rural parts of the state, people have no other choice but to rely on cars to get around. Meanwhile, other cities are tearing up motorways, supporting smart transport solutions including active transport and putting in place innovative measures to get cars out of town centres. Some cities have set themselves a goal of being car-free.

Congestion charges, SUV levies, free public transport, connected cycleways, electric, autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicles - the world is moving towards smarter technologies much faster than we are and it’s time we got on board the smart transport revolution.

Tune in to this fascinating discussion with Greens MLC Cate Faehrmann, transport advocates and smart transport experts about what we need to be doing now to not be left behind.

Panellists:

Sophie Wade - Councillor and former Mayor at the City of Yarra.

Sophie Wade is a Councillor and former Mayor at the City of Yarra. In March this year, Sophie led the charge for a Paris-style increased parking fee for SUVs to be implemented in Yarra, sparking a national discussion about the increasing size of cars on inner-city streets. Sophie is also a consumer lawyer.

Dr Jennifer L. Kent - Senior Research Fellow and Urbanism Research Lead at the University of Sydney School of Architecture, Design and Planning.

Jennifer’s research interests are at the intersections between urban planning, transport and human health. She specialises in combining quantitative and qualitative data with understandings from policy science to trace the practical, cultural and political barriers to healthy and sustainable transport. Key issues examined to date include parenting and private car use, companion animals and transport, the links between health and higher density living, the interpretation of health evidence into urban planning policy, the health impact of extended commute times, and cultural and structural barriers to sustainable transport use. When she’s not working, she is running after her kid, walking her dachshund or looking for migratory birdlife in the bay that is her backyard.

Prof. David Levinson - Professor in Transport Engineering and researcher.

Dr Levinson joined the University of Sydney from the University of Minnesota in 2017 as Foundation Professor in Transport Engineering.  He conducts research on Accessibility, Transport Economics, Transport Network Evolution, and Transport and Land Use Interaction. He is the Founding Editor of the Journal of Transport and Land Use and of Findings. He has authored several books including: The Transportation Experience, Planning for Place and Plexus, The 30-Minute City, A Political Economy of Access, Elements of Access, and The End of Traffic and the Future of Access. He writes at https://www.transportist.net .

This event will be held online via Zoom

Join us on 9 September @ 7:30pm and take this opportunity to ask your questions.

If you have questions about the event please email office@nsw.greens.org.au or call the Greens NSW office on (02) 9045 6999.

Let's Talk is a regular series. Each month is a different guest speaker and topic.

This event is fully wheelchair accessible. It will be held online.

If you are under 18, your parent or guardian will need to contact the event organiser directly to let them know there will be someone under 18 attending.