06 TRANSPORTATION/INFRASTRUCTURE Yusni Aziz, Polpat Nilubon, Olga Sankova, Jorgen Tandberg, Kangshuo Tang, ValĂŠrie Van de Velde
In order to accomodate the radical transformation of production of commodities occuring on the site, and the resulting decrease in population, means of transportation will also change. Initially, the changes in the streetscape of Paris will be due to the agricultural ventures into what was formerly public roads. Furthermore, when all production is local and fuel is unobtainable, long-distance travel and transportation will no longer happen to the same extent as before, forcing community-building on a local level. 94
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DAY 1 During the first day under a state of anarchy, people use public transport regularly. Subway, trams and busses operate, but some employees stay at home due to safety concerns, which causes a. Also the electric carsharing and bike-sharing schemes run normally, as users still have credits in their account. 5 Individual means of transportation (by car and bike) are characterized by a higher use, as people hoard water, food and fuel and also drive farther to find more food.
Current mobility: 44% cars 20% public transport 2% bikes (public and privat) 34% walking
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Population: 21.000
Car sharing: <http://www.lostincheeseland.com/2011/10/autolib-preview-of-paris-car-sharing.htm>
The site is today occupied by a variety of forms of transportation. Car ownership within the one square kilometer site, and according to the average for Paris’ historical city, totals 54601 - in addition to this number comes rented cars and taxis. Further, private means of transportation also includes bicycles, approximately 5250 2 within the site, and scooters, mopeds and motorcycles. In addition, there exists a car-sharing network of electric cars, approximately 423 of which will on average be parked within the site. In terms of public transportation, an average of 270 out of Paris’ extensive system of public bicycles will be located within the site at any given time. The area is serviced by a network of buses, and has 6 metro stations, serving 5 metro lines. The metro is to a large extent economically independent from the State, 4 yet given the economic collapse that follows the absence of a State, the public means of transportation will still close due to an absence of funding and maintenance; its properties will either be subjected to forms of reuse or abandoned. The roads on the site range between 6m and 30m width. Within 4 weeks after the introduction of anarchy, agriculture will take over a large portion of the streetscape (approx. 90%), leaving only the most trafficed paths for transportation of supplies. Transportation will no longer be as major an issue in anarcity when food is locally produced and no fuel is available for individuals to purchase; the commodities to be transported are mainly seeds and agricultural tools.
1 Mairie de Paris: Demographics, A Cosmopolitan City, <http://www.paris.fr/english/presentation-of- the-city/demographics-a-cosmopolitan-city/rub_8125_stand_29896_port_18748> 2 <http://obisproject.com/palio/html.wmedia?_Instance=obis&_Connector=data&_ID=148&_Check Sum=-1849215083> 3 http://www.lostincheeseland.com/2011/10/autolib-preview-of-paris-car-sharing.html 4 EMTA. Comparative study of the public transport financing and of the fare policy in different metro politan areas of Europe. 17 Mar. 2012 <http://www.emta.com/spip.php?article750>
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WEEK 1 Population: 21.000
Within the first week, public transportation stops .6 Bus, tram, metro and train drivers realize that wages won’t get paid and strikes are held. This ends in a general absence of public transportation. When currency breaks down,7 also taxi and car-pooling disappears. In this point, individuals and families migrate to the countryside, to reunite with relatives living in (more) self-sustainable conditions. Others migrate to settle in a safer, isolated and empty, natural environment. They become the pioneers of a new society. 8 A third, smaller group of individuals drives to the countryside – as long as they have fuel – to collect seeds, supplies and fertilizers and returns to the city. Under normal conditions, France has fuel reserves for 98 days, 9 but as a result of army control, the existing reserves are not accessible to gas station holders and individuals. Instead, fuel is diverted by the army towards the transportation of goods for basic needs, such as water and medicines. This causes increasingly high fuel prices. After one week, fewer cars are driving in the street and more are parked – out of fuel – along the boulevards and squares. Also waste becomes part of the streetscape, as collection has stopped.
MONTH 1 Population: 15.000
After one month, migration from the city to the countryside affects the amount of cars in the streetscape. According to their local lifestyle, individuals won’t use their cars anymore for close trips, but they will save fuel for long distance emergency rides. This includes finding family members and obtaining supplies of water and food. And since communities are formed by the inhabitants of the same building 10 for collecting water, the same members will start an elementary trade in the form of exchanging goods with the countryside. Besides this, people will try to use fuel for heating and cooking rather than for transportation. This is generally not recommended, and dangerous – however, gasoline can be used to light other materials, such as wood. It can only be used by itself in certain burners, and this is still not considered safe, due to the additives the gasoline contains. While trash and cars that have run out of fuel accumulate in the streets, they also start to be taken over by individual agricultural trials.
6 NPR: ‘Athenians take to bicycles to ride out crisis’, http://www.npr.org/2011/10/26/141712554/ athenians-take-to-bicycles-to-ride-out-crisis. 7 Anarcity will be closely followed by a world wide crash in all stock exchanges. 8 See tabula rasa script. 9 Source? 10 See water script.
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MONTH 6 At the moment month 6 is reached, few individuals have fuel. So, if one is in need for transportation, to transport fertile soil from the park to his place for instance, he has to rely on human powered transport. The easiest solution is the individual bike and freight bikes. Those who have fuel, use this for longer trips to get supplies. And collective efforts are taken to transport dead bodies to the graveyard. Due to the lack of fuel and collective transportation, individuals are ‘trapped’ in their area, their life become even more local than before. Some travel by foot or bicycles along longer stretches, between cities to live with other family members, but his form of travel becomes more dangerous with time. Streets are taken over by agriculture and the inhabitants only maintain enough road to support human powered transportation, approximately 10% of the today’s existing road system. New paths for circulation form through the agriculture, based on most travelled routes and directions. Because individuals survive on hoard-
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Population: 1.600
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ed food for the first 8 weeks, 11 it is the waste materials from these supplies that will end up in the streets. Later, waste becomes more organic and is reused for compost and fertilizer to a large extent. The army prevents burning of waste due to potential pollution to soil, water and air, but this still happens to some extent. When agriculture moves into the streets and public spaces, Collective groups are organized to divide the waste into organic and non-organic 12 and some materials are re-used (tin cans, glass/plastic bottles, metal bits). Rest waste is transported to the local incinerator plants 13 by freight bikes through collective efforts. Most vehicles left in the streets out of fuel are dismantled and used for making greenhouse structures, others are moved away.
YEAR 1 Population: 15.000
After one year, the absence of opportunities for travelling far (due to a lack of public transportation and private fuel), as well as the diminishing population, creates a larger sense of community within the 1km2 site. The amount of outdoor time spent in the street for agriculture and physical labor makes
social connections within the remaining population. Besides bikes and freight bikes, rickshaws are seen as a new type of public transport, for carrying goods or people for short distances. On a small scale, ways of transportation becomes a point of trade and energy storage components are being attached to private bikes for producing energy in batteries. Transportation of soil, from the nearby park is done through human-powered transport, but the transportation of seeds from the countryside becomes more difficult as fuel runs out. Streetscapes are no longer filled with waste, since it is mainly organic, and so reused for compost and fertilizer. Also other products are fully reused: the remaining cars become containers for soil and agriculture and car tires are used to grow vegetables in. Besides agriculture, there is left enough room in the streets for pedestrians, bicycle and freight bicycle use (approximately 10%). The absence of opportunities for travelling far (lack of public transportation, private fuel), as well as the diminishing population, create a larger sense of community within the 1km2 site. The amount of outdoor time spent in the street for agriculture and physical labour makes social connections between the remaining population
11 See source 8. 12 Farmers and energy supplier would do this for composting and biomass. 13 See energy script: assuming that when energy is produced, it will be burned and turned back into energy.
Month 6 Most vehicles left in the streets out of fuel are dismantled and used for making greenhouse structures, others are moved away. Means of transportation rely on human power.
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YEAR 5 Population: 2.500
After five years, alternative means of transportation are invented and worked out. Electric powered short and medium distance transportation is done by do-it-yourself electric powered bikes and freight-bikes. 14 Electric cars are back into use. Owners use this as their commodity to survive and form enterprises,15 while reusing the existing energy charging stations. This means that streets are opened up more for car use and less space is used for agriculture and water collection.
14 How Stuff Works: Do It Yourself: Build Yourself an Electric Bike, <http://blogs.howstuffworks. com/2009/03/25/diy-build-yourself-an-electric-bike/> 15 Autolib (Wikipedia), <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autolibâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;>
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CONCLUSION
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