Transport and Communications Exhibition in Munich
| Published date | 01 November 1965 |
| Date | 01 November 1965 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/0032258X6503801111 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
TRANSPORT
AND
COMMUNICATIONS
EXHIBITION
IN
MUNICH
Specially reported for
THE
POLICE
JOURNAL
by Mr. A. A. Muir.
An exhibition of transport and communications took place in
Munich from June 24 to October3, this year. The
terms"
transport"
and"
communications" are used in their widest possible sense.
One complete hall was devoted to the subject of traffic in towns
in three sections, YESTERDAY, TODAY and TOMORROW.
The Traffic Problem Develops
"Yesterday" showed the development of the traffic problem
from the invention of the wheel at Ur in about the year 3000 B.C.
down to about the year 1920, when it is said the influence of motor
traffic began to make itself felt in town planning in the United
States of America. Apparently the Romans were the first really
committed town planners. Traffic in big towns was partly resolved
in New York in 1865, with the elevated railway, in Berlin in 1881
with the electric railway and in London in 1863 with the underground.
The section
"Today"
showed in striking form the truism that
the structure and density of built-up areas determine the transport
services and means of transport; and what weight in town planning
should be given to the claims of through traffic, local traffic and
parking arrangements. The inevitable conclusion is
Buchanan's-
the inevitability of increasingly strict regulations, though it would
appear that road signs cannot multiply much more.
The
section"
Tomorrow"
showed how a number of towns would
like to solve the traffic problem. All agree that it is impossible to
allow anybody to drive into the town centre in their own vehicles.
Public means of transport must be encouraged but it must be better,
cheaper and more attractive.
It
is surprising that more use has
not
been made of mono-rail systems. You could travel all round this
exhibition by the mono-rail and it would seem such a system would
work very well in taking passengers from airports to air terminals
in the centre of the city.
The British contribution to this problem is the London Under-
ground, which looks fine in the exhibition grounds
but
is not quite
so attractive in the summer rush hours; and the same thing could
perhaps be said of the splendid double decker express Leyland 'bus.
The short conclusion is that more money will have to be spent by
the local authorities and there will have to be more interference from
central government.
541 November 1965
To continue reading
Request your trial