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What We’re Reading: The ‘Unstoppable’ Development of a European Subway
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here.
No turning back
Belgrade is known as the largest capital city in Europe without a subway. But if all goes to plan, the Serbian capital won’t warrant that nickname much longer. After almost a century of failed initiatives, reports Bloomberg in an article shared by Executive Editor Will Doig, the construction of a subway in Belgrade is actually moving ahead this time, and the “unstoppable” development should be complete by 2030.
Chronic congestion and pollution dominate the city of 1.7 million people, and lengthy commutes are reportedly creating staff retention issues for businesses. The huge infrastructure initiative has led to widespread public debate about everything from planned routes to environmental impacts, although few seem to disagree that a subway is sorely needed.
“Just when you think the traffic can’t get any worse, it does,” says 54-year-old municipal bus driver Milenko Stosic, adding that his route between suburbs on far ends of the city takes longer each year, “to the point that bus schedules have become useless.”
Will says:
Washington DC built a new subway system in the 1970s, and no American city has done it since. Even if the era of subways is over in the U.S., it’s encouraging to see it’s still unfolding in Europe.
Romania’s returns
A few weeks back, we published MaryLou Costa’s story on pay-as-you-throw initiatives that help cities cut waste and citizens save cash, so we were delighted to see another waste-reduction project hit the headlines recently — this time celebrating Romania’s deposit return scheme.
The numbers are impressive: Romania’s recycling rates were among the lowest in the EU, according to a feature in The Guardian shared by Contributing Editor Michaela Haas, but in the two years since the scheme launched, beverage-packaging collection and recycling has skyrocketed to as high as 94 percent in some months.
There’s still a lot of work to be done, say experts, who apparently warn that the deposit return scheme covers only a small fraction of the country’s overall waste stream, but others say it’s a good start. Interestingly, as part of the scheme, Romania has introduced a legal framework to penalize retailers if they refuse returns. That means that even the smallest village shops must accept containers if they sell the products, or they risk fines.
Michaela says:
I wish the U.S. would start something like this!
What else we’re reading
Canada’s Indigenous-Style Prisons Are Designed To Right Historical Wrongs — shared by Founder David Byrne from The Economist
Street Smart: Chennai’s AutoQueens Steer a Powerful Cooperative From Behind the Wheels — shared by Contributing Editor Geetanjali Krishna from UpBeat
Botanists Decode Secret Life of Rare Plants to Ensure Reintroduction Success — shared by Interim Editorial Director Tess Riley from Mongabay
How To Make Data Centers Less Thirsty — shared by Interim Editorial Director Tess Riley from Grist
In other news…
It’s December, which for many households can be a time when advent calendars make their annual appearance, bringing daily gifts of everything from small Santa-shaped chocolates to luxury perfumes.
But have you heard of the reverse advent calendar movement?
There are lots of ways to do it, but the basic principle is simple: Grab a box or container of some sort, and fill it each day with something you think someone else could benefit from — toys for local charities, canned goods for local food banks, warm clothes for local shelters. As well as helping someone in need, it’s a great way to teach kids to think of others.
The post What We’re Reading: The ‘Unstoppable’ Development of a European Subway appeared first on Reasons to be Cheerful.
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