A proposal put forward by a team of behavioural scientists at Cardiff University suggests the city should solve its binge drinking problem by redesigning streets so they are more user friendly for dunks. A study released this week tell us "scientists" (well it would be wouldn't it?) conclude that accidents and violence could be reduced if the street layouts are changed to be more accommodating to the rat - arsed revellers and paralytic pedestrians that throng the thoroughfares of a Friday night.
Now let's just set aside the question how many sozzled sociologists and legless logicians had to stagger and lurch around the streets of Cardiff in order to carry out this study. Instead let us start by asking what makes a street user friendly for drunks. Moving pavements that take two steps forward and on back? (anyone who has ever had far too much to drink will recognise this stride pattern,) Rubber paving for a soft landing when people fall? Bendy bollards and lamposts? Rounded corners on all the buildings.
And how will sober people fare in such streets, not everybody likes to drink a lot when they go out but will drunk - friendly mean abstemious hostile?
Once again we see that the "scientists" have spent a lot of money on a project that they just have not thought through properly. This is rather worrying when you remember that thinking is what a scientists job is all about.
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Comments: 13
British drunks have auto-pilot too. I speak from experience having woken at home with a mouth that tasted like a camel's arse and no memory of even leaving the pub let alone walking home. The whole thing is a conspiracy between the political correctness police and the money hungry, workshy folk who inhabit modern academic institutions.
Well we would all like to live in, or next to a pub. But would anything ever get done?
Interesting spelling of Alchie, its usually alky in Britain. Which is why we are all worried about the terrorist bag lady our Scottish Prime Minister keeps talking of, Alkie Ada.
You could meet her on any street. Oo-er.
I think there is a hidden agenda. Given that scientists are the kind of people who would say, "The Project Description says we should work on finding a cure for cance but to hell with that, I'm gonna see what haappens if you keep feeding a rat green jelly beans," I reckon what they are up to is they are turning the city centre into a human pinball game.
Some drunk staggers out of a bar and a bunch of scientists give him a good kick up the arse and see how many obstacles he bounces off before reaching the bus station or falling in the harbour. If he staggers back into the bar they get to flip him back into the game.
it sounds really cool, makes me wish I was a behavioural scientist.
Yeah, we get a lot of that in Britain. Just lasty week my sister repoted in our blog that scientists at Liverpool University had found participation in sport of pysical activity burn off more calories and is therefore healthier than playing computer games.
I mean, you really need a mega sized brain to work that one out :-)