Car sharing - it's the future!

You might remember some time ago, I mentioned how Leeds got screwed over on a Supertram scheme that would have saved the city from complete gridlock. If you don't, I'll give you the gist.

Leeds is a big city, with lots of people. Unfortunately, we don't have a public transport system (well, we do, but not that you'd notice). Leeds tried to get a transport system, and was told we could have one. But then London decided that it wanted a really big party in 2012, so transport secretary Alistair Darling told Leeds to forget about a Supertram, and think about buying some more buses instead.

Well today, Mr Darling came back up North to face the wrath of the loiners. He'd very proudly announced that he'd turn one of the busiest stretches of motorway in the country into a "high occupancy lane".
Basically, what that means is that unless you have two or more people in your car, driving between Bradford and Leeds will soon become a living hell.

He spoke this morning of reducing the number of bottlenecks on our roads which cause the congestion problems that we end up with and his idea new involved making even more bottlenecks. Essentially he plans on shutting off a one mile stretch of the M62 to anyone with just one person in their car which by his logic, would mean that we’d all save around 8 minutes on our journeys. Why it’s only a one mile stretch you’d have to ask him, but basically he’s spending £2.5m on a bit of white paint.
Mr Darling was, for some reason, particularly proud of his new ill-thought out idea but after all, our Alistair is a strange character. Firstly, he has the most silver hair you have ever seen yet, despite this, his eyebrows look like two slugs that have been stuck to his forehead. They are unbelievably black.
Secondly, for some inexplicable reason, he thought it’d be a good idea to put a bus lane on the M4, despite the fact that no buses use the M4.

Alistair Darling seriously pissed off Leeds City Council over the whole Supertram debacle. So it seems more than a co-incidence that whilst Darling was boasting about how good 2+ lanes are and how they’re the solution to all of lives problems, Leeds City Council came out and admitted that the high occupancy lane we already have in the city isn’t working at all. In fact, it’s completely useless.

I’ll raise a glass to the Council worker who released that statement. It might not get us the Supertram, but it’ll show Darling up for an even bigger idiot than he already is.