DESIGN | SYSTEMIC DESIGN | MOBILITY

Message to car owners: Stop it. Really.

(how car ownership is one of the great killers of our time)

a car parked in front of guilt, Arab Street, Kampomg Glam, Singapore, 2022

My family and I have been living in Singapore for a good while now — with the day of our arrival still close enough for us to remember the profound relief we felt when we realized that, finally, we had come to a society that is somewhat sensibly organized, and, well — somewhat safe.

Before we came here, I lived in many other places, but most of the time, I have been in India and in Belgium.

in countries with too many cars
standstill is the default state 
remember you are not stuck in traffic
if you own a car, you are traffic

Of these, my relationship with mobility has been best in India. “Where Mother India rules, she doesn’t” — was a stanza often quoted by one of my legendary professors at uni. I am thinking of this now, because it applies very well in the context of traffic and mobility in India. So let me start all over.

Where Mother India rules, traffic behaves according to some kind of natural logic — and the art of survival comes with the skill of establishing human connection.

Let me explain.