Townsplaining: why is Britain so bad at this? 

I live in Deganwy, over the "cob" from Conwy (Deganwy, along with Llandudno Junction are under the jurisdiction/are wards of Conwy Town Council though there isn't a strong civic "ownership" of the town itself in my opinion). The trains to Conwy may be every 2 hours and not enough is made of promoting the much busier and larger station of Llandudno Junction 0.5 miles away (with a service every 20 mins or so to various destinations, including London) as a "gateway" station. Welsh Government are introducing the North Wales Metro (to mirror that which has just opened in South Wales) but this lacks ambition. I wrote to my AM to suggest shuttle trains/trams running from Llandudno Junction to Llandudno to improve frequency, movement etc and had a response which suggested a miry of red tape. People are conservative in their outlook when it comes to town planning here (new homes continue to consist only of executive detached homes with integral garages). The new, costly cycle lanes are "shared" spaces with pedestrians rather than separated. This means cycling is only regarded as a "leisurely" pursuit rather than a tangible means of travel (most cyclists stay on the road and are then jeered at by car drivers), there are literally no cycle racks strategically placed in town centres either, . Local politicians tend to collude with a "suburban" rather than an "urban" approach to solutions. The flats you refer to in the brutalist old library building are for holiday accommodation (if built)...there is no commitment to old Conwy being a tangible residential place...most of the terraced collages are holiday lets as there are no parking solutions considered for longer term residence...which is reflected in the feel of the town...you will see some houses can take months to sell as the parking issues are not addressed, As you say, the traffic system....which is one-way...lends a noisy, grubby air to the place which stops you lingering leisurely. The Palace Theatre should be a jewel for Conwy...we badly need an arts cinema offer in the area (I travel to Liverpool for that!). There is no cinema in Llandudno now whereas there used to be many. The Cineworld in Llandudno Junction promotes car use and those visiting Llandudno are unaware of it's existence.....I could go on for hours...

Britain is very centralised. Local government is kept poor and relatively powerless. In consequence high cost schemes can only be paid for by prvite developers and it takes only a small minority to prevent low cost schemes.

I am Dutch, live in the UK, and have visited Conwy. I share the sense of so many unused opportunities that a town like Conwy would have if only there was more thoughtful urban planning going on. When visiting Conwy, I very much enjoyed the castle and walking through town felt as if it was entirely separate from it. And yes ... the way cars dominate the town adds to that very much. The town that I always kept comparing it to was Carcassonne in southern France. Carcassonne does very much right of what Conwy doesn't seem to do at all. I was surprised how the spirit of the Langue d' Oc is palpably alive everywhere in Carcassonne, while Conwy seems to struggle being Welsh. I enjoyed my visit, we had a lovely lunch there as well, and I hope the town gets a chance to be what it could be.

As an American visiting the UK, I can say that Britain is still leagues ahead of the USA in terms of townsplanning.

I think everyone in the UK should visit a small or medium sized Dutch town to see how peaceful and pleasant they are. Our town planning is poor and car centric, and I don't think blanket initiatives like Wales's 20mph speed reduction actually do anything - you need to encourage drivers to avoid areas with high pedestrian footfall (or where you want there to be) and make the walkable space much more inviting.

Never been to Naarden, but I did just come back from Holland and visited Delft. I have also been to Conwy twice. Conwy and Caernarfon were two of my favourite towns in Wales, but you are right in that it could be so much better. Delft was lovely, and we cycled for a day in Utrecht and it was so easy and quite liberating. I really hope we can learn some lessons from the Dutch, but it will take quite a large culture and political shift before that happens. We still love our cars too much in this country and don't realise there can be better ways to do things if we can be humble enough to look across the Channel.

Note, that Naarden is only one example in the Neterlands. We have many of those old villages. Traffic is diverted around. Woudrichem, Heusden, Linschoten, Kampen, Sloten, just to name a few.

Conwy is such a pretty town and the traffic is intrusive. I am interested to see what local people think

Interesting video and kind of coincidentally relevant to me. I grew up on Anglesey and went to school in Colwyn bay. So frequently went through Conwy. I remember the bypass being built and hardly ever went to Conwy again. Eventually my wife and I emigrated to the Netherlands and we've noticed the focus on people rather than traffic. Here cycling into town is the logical option and getting into the car is really not usually the best option.

Yeah the old apprehension that shoppers have to park on street in front of the shop impeded a bypass in my town back in the 80s. Now we are a unattractive "drive through town" with one shop dying after another. (And of course, no free space or money is left to catch up the construction of a bypass to release residents from noise and pollution.)

It’s weirdly exhilarating when your little home town is a subject in a non-Dutch video. Thanks!

St Malo in France is wonderful. No cars except residents inside the city walls. It is vibrant, beautiful etc etc....and the mayor has banned R B&B

I am from both countries featured in this video (UK/Netherlands), living in the Netherlands. It always surprised me how lacking infrastructure was in Britain and other examples such as in Conwy. Having been to the UK recently I often found myself comparing it to what exists in America rather than the Netherlands like in Naarden (which I have visited multiple times) and various other examples across the EU, most notably with infrastructure like shopping centres and bridges, but also sharing similarities at the same time. I always saw infrastructure there to be mostly similar to what we have here in NL, but I was very surprised to see that that is not the case at all. Very interesting to see. Lovely video! Hello from the other side of the North Sea!

Your voice is superb. Felt almost as if i was watching BBC. Conwy seems beautiful despite it's car-centric woes. Would love to visit. Hello from the Netherlands!

Conwy looks like a beautiful historic town; how have I never heard of it until today?

I love how towncentres thrived for centuries but now it's supposedly instant death if cars are restricted or banned

Thanks for this revealing short. In essence, motor cars are a menace. Yet motorists insist that towns provide essentially for them and to hell with public transport and pedestrians. Towns are for people, not for motor cars.

Im a Brit that lives near Naarden. I hate to say this but, comparing the old fashioned mindset and planning of the UK and the Dutch is like comparing sour apples and chocolate! Bikes are a great way to free up traffic, but There's no way you would get most Brits to even use a bike, never mind set up roads for cycling lanes.

Great video. I'm Dutch. I could be wrong. But when I visit Britain it feels as if it's a bit stuck in it's ways. There are still these huge sea -resort-towns build during the industrial revolution that are mostly empty. A town like Comwy, with a castle, walls ,etc could be almost as famous as Dubrovnik, if it spend some money on making it's centre car free ad some greenery ,outdoor spaces ,etc. it could be a great tourist destination.

Park and ride scheme, restrict town parking rights to registered local residents and businesses only.

I dated a young girl who attended Portsmouth Art College with me back in 1975 to 79. She sent me a large colored picture of Narden Festings during the easter holidays. She lived their with her Mother who was Dutch and worked at the Phillips corporation. Her name was Susan Bowmaister.

It's great seeing somewhere in Wales being used to talk about urban planning...even if it is as a bad example 😅 I live in Glan Conwy on the other side of the estuary and I love Conwy but hate the cars. I live close enough to cycle but the existing cycle paths are patchy and are all shared surfaces. If we visit for a day by car we do try to park outside the walls but do park inside for a quick visit. I talked to a MP for Shotton a few days ago and he was skeptical of the pedestrianisation of the high street in Holywell. He felt that local business suffered without on street parking and that pedestrianisation only works in cities. The high street in Conwy has such a narrow pavement that there is no room for pedestrians to pass. We definitely need to learn from the continental brethren. There are rumours of a cycle path down the Conwy valley and perhaps a bridge across from Glan Conwy to the RSPB nature reserve which would create a short cut to Conwy but I haven't seen any definitive plan yet so I'll believe it when I see it.

An interesting comparison. I have enjoyed the relative quiet of a few Dutch towns (though I haven’t been to Naarden), and really envy their approach to accessibility/mobility. I also stayed in Conwy Youth Hostel a decade or so ago (arriving by that infrequent train service). I thought the town was charming, but I was very aware of the road traffic, and this video makes the contrast between the two approaches very clear.

I felt immediately more comfortable when you switched to Naarden and knew it was the quiet that did it. Sadly if you look at a map of UK road noise, it's very hard to find a place where you don't have to put up with it in your daily life. We seem to have plastered the whole country with roads and many go right through residential and commercial areas.

Naarden is a very affluent town. Very much above the national average.

Noticed the same thing in Warwick, it's so busy in a historic town center that should be carless. That kind of traffic would be kept well away in the Netherlands to promote a pedestrianised center.

I visited Conwy on my way back from a bike tour. Spent an hour there. It was lovely but just like you said it was beset by traffic. The same can be said for all the major valleys through Snowdonia, Exmoor, Dartmoor, the Beacons, Peaks, Dales, Moors, and Lakes. My question is what it all is for? These are tiny towns on the edge of the sea. They can be served well by extant train stations if the services were invested in, and goods can get to Holyhead by the same method. I don't think there's that many people outside of Lorry drivers who need to get to Holyhead, and you could replace hundreds of lorries with one goods train to a central depot in Chester. You can then downgrade all these roads to B roads and start restoring the man-made and natural beauty of these locations. We don't need to supply that many visitors to national parks in order to keep the local economies functional, we need to create jobs outside of tourism so young people go and live there. I would love to live in Conwy or Llanberis or Bala or somewhere similar but there's nothing for me there apart from retail, bars and council work. Then again, you don't need to look far from Conwy to see what really terrible urban planning looks like, go over to Llandudno Junction for an entirely different vibe.

I believe the difference has a lot to do with the election system used. The Dutch use proportional representation at all levels, which allows for many more political viewpoints and much larger influence on politicians by the voters.

First impression of Conwy was of the cars. Madness allowing cars up/to park on High St. Pedestrians outnumber the cars 50 to 1

Once again: Cars & "my personal need"

everytime i drive around the uk i am astonished at the fact that none of the roads appear to be in straight lines. none. city centre, town. very short, randomly winding roads. and not in a deliberate, artful way, just so random. then i go on google street view of a random outskirt of another countries city, or i watch one of those youtube videos where they walk through the city, and it is constructed of straight lines. the urban planning looks deliberate. its just weird frankly. i wonder how that came about.

I live in Naarden! Surprised to see this film, indeed: traffic! Naarden main throughway included multiple 90 degree bends, no asphalt (cobblestones work like speed-bumps), of course speed bumps, a town's population who do not want too many vehicles and in mornings, they have traffic limitations! These are traffic lights outside of the walled city only allowing a few vehicles per minute through. More demand: just wait in queue. A man-made traffic jam, to allow for calm traffic in the town itself. Residents typically only travel outbound in the mornings, they have almost no issues. Builders: they arrive (very) early or wait. But those lights only work when traffic hits a certain rate. These days: most travel around! This becomes habitual. Speed is 30km/u. And everything is geared to bicycles. There is free (!) parking, but limited parking on market streets. Idea ofr Conwy: Take out the asphalt, limit through traffic with traffic lights (Naarden even uses a heavy beem that moves up from the pavement to block passage when the lights are red). Add traditional cobblestones fitting to the architecture, use bicycle freedom, allow for out door dining or pub area's. Add more green (small grass belts, lined-trees, other trees with wrought iron circular covers. Require busses to park on certain spots with same way out as in, no through traffic for busses. Minimize truck access to final destination traffic only. Finally, install draw bridges which can dump vehicles every once in the while .... uh - joking! It is a hassle to drive through Naarden, but ok to visit the market. Most shops are specialty shops. There are many cultural activities in the main Church - busses need to park outside of town (only drive in to drop off or collect people) however, many busses do not even drive into town at all (for some reason). I love (!!!) to walk through or around town, buy ice cream or sit down with my dog and get a coffee and apple pie on a Sunday afternoon. Love the small restaurants in different price ranges up to (former ... ok) single Michelin star, but starting with chips and mayonnaise. We lack the proper fish and chips!! You forgot that last point - Naarden has no fish and chips. There is fish, also chips, but come on .... raw herring? (love it, at the Saturday morning market). For me: look forward to visit Conwy. Naarden by the way: fully, totally, majority .......... conservative!!! Oh yes, lean to the right, love cars, but demand 'livability'! Demand that! And get to love it.

I travel to Conwy frequently for work and could never understand how the high street in this beautiful historic town had the same feeling as a many of the post industrial towns here in South Wales. I think this sums it up pretty nicely! The small size of the town would be ideal for pedestrianization and an increased frequency in rail service alone could easily transform it into a must see destination for the UK.

Until I retired I visited Conwy and Deganwy frequently both through work and for recreation, when I visited Conwy I always used the car park just outside the castle. During the summer months the town could become very busy so we tended to arrive early and then leave when the crowds began to build. I can remember the 1970s when Conwy didn't have a station and you had to alight at Llandudno Junction, about half a mile away and either walk or get a taxi into Conwy. The main A55 to Holyhead was a nightmare in those days, between Colwyn Bay and Holyhead it passed through nearly every town and village en route, Conwy being a particularly bad bottleneck. Britains town planners have always been bad, particularly during the fifties, sixties and seventies when the seemed to have a love affair with concrete. I remember when I first started visiting mainland Europe in the late seventies thinking how much better the Belgians, Dutch and Scandinavians seemed to be at blending the new with the old. I live just outside Chester, which in my opinion would have benefited from a more European approach. That being said, its still kept much of its character and it does have decent rail links, the station could be better though. For some reason one of the four park and ride stations has been closed for a number of years.

Good point. I live in the city of Groningen, which has been limiting cars in the historic city since 1975. It is one of the best places to live in and has one of the most vibrant shopping and entertainment in the mostly pedestrian centre of any city I know. I wish many more towns and cities would follow our example.

the thing with Naarden is that yes its quiet during the day...but people use Naarden as a shortcut to get home...so at rush hour we have 500 more cars than normal...there are plans to make the main street car free...but some shop owners are against it...for it will loose customers...and there are also more cars than residents there ( around 1500 people live there)...and some streets are so small...that together with parked cars...the firetrucks or ambulances have no way to get through...

I'm from North Wales and it's the same story over and over again with towns and villages that have so much potential and are totally wasted. It breaks my heart. Caernarfon is even worse.

I am Dutch but in the French region of Aveyron at the moment. I am so surprised by all the lovely renovated medieval villages. It is clear the French love their history. What is the matter with the British people not to conserve their heritage and to pull out cars?

I live close to Naarden. It’s beautiful, but was conquered every time an enemy wanted to conquer it.

Townsplaining? Is that the bricks-and-mortar version of "Mansplaining"?

I'm from Conwy and I work periodically in Holland. I think I have a fair take on both places. You omit a massive factor regarding Conwy and this comparison between Holland, the topography of the area of Conwy compare to the dutch towns and villages. The surrounding towns and villages connected to Cinwy are in mountanous areas. Cycling is not as easy and natural as it it is in Holland. I love how flat it is here in the Netherlands and the ease of almost all bike paths that are here. However, back home in Conwy its not so easy, unless you are a young adult or extremely fit person. For most, it would be impractical to cycle between these places

One thing that does strike me is the current cars verses bikes argument, with both sides entrenched. I think we need a hybrid solution. I drive a Kei car, which is specified deliberately for cities. If you live in an urban area, then maybe in town access should be limited to 1 Kei car per household, with high quality parking available beyond town boundaries at subsidised costs for locals and visitors. My local city has expensive city centre car parking and under used park and ride sites 10 plus minutes outside the city centre. Unsurprisingly, the high street is dying, but out of town retail parks with free parking are full. I live 8 miles from the city centre, but the bus ( half a mile away, along an unlit, unpaved country road, takes 45 minutes. There is an excellent train service from a station 4 miles from my home, but the car park is £8 and the local bus doesnt run to it. Cycling is not practical. The local roads are too narrow, too busy, and poorly lit. Only a fool cycles on roads where HGVs have to overtake you and tye speed limit is 60 mph. So whats the answer? Cheap and safe parking nearer the town centre but outside the historic centre, with intense shuttle bus links to the centre and transport hubs. Limitations on car access to the centre, but secure parking nearby for the residents. Kei cars, not SUVs. Proper cycle routes away from other yraffic, in the inner area.existing bus routes stop at out new inner urban car parks, rather than the high street and bus depot. You could pay for some of this by selling off the out of town park and ride sites for housing development. Also by making free shuttle bus links a requirement of all out of town retail developments. Just my thoughts...

I think topology has more to do with it than you mentioned. Also Naarden has less tourist visitors than Conwy.

I've visited once, it was nice enough and had some good shops - though surprisingly baren when it came to good cafes (recc some in menai bridge) - but yeah it felt like a town with a lot of potential, The traffic didn't feel too intrusive (relative to other towns) but yeah just some better investment etc and it could be really great.

The highway around Naarden is a heritage from WWII. And the center of Naarden Vesting is still for some a through road. Wich in turn makes a lot of noise with the cobblestones. Wich makes sitting on a terrace is not that enjoyable. I would rather go to Amersfoort, Elburg or Heusden wich are carefree for a major part of the city center. But still better then Conwy 😊

Hang on. Naarden Vesting (fortress) does not have an elected mayor. Nor does any municipality in the Netherlands. And it likely is part of a larger municipal government as the drive to merge towns has been going on for decades. The difference is probably local politics and governance is really local, and not at the same time national.

What about Caernarfon which is a similar place to Conwy in many respects - A large castle and fortified town walls which actually is largely traffic free within the old town. Is it any better off or more attractive than Conwy. I've visited both and found Caernarfon a lot more run down with less tourism than Conwy. A factor might also be the nationalist feel to the area.

People in the UK drive everywhere, won't walk far, cycling is a niche thing. Manchester has had new cycle lanes built in the last few years. During covid they've also separated whole lanes of traffic on dual carriageways for cyclists. When diesel got to £2/L during covid I was still astonished to see empty cycle lanes and people queueing in traffic in the suburbs. The weather was great, there was no excuse. I thought if people in the UK even in these circumstances prefer to drive everywhere (most likely short distances within the city) then it will never change.

Simple explenation we were under threat from all sides most of the time. You also see this with modern day israel. And thier remarkable iron dome and systems alike. If you arnt safe you must improvise and be on top of the game. Its that or fall down. England was on a island that only seen some invasions in the time it was pretty easy to do so. After that only the dutch once took it under wiliam the third but that was more a liberation cause england fell into catholic hands and we both were protestants. So dukes in whales and scotland worked together and asked us to come. They were not bad. They just had not the urgeing need to do so.

I visited Britain twice and both times I was somewhat disappointed. Every urban space felt sad and uninviting. I noticed that pavements are weirdly narrow while car lanes are super wide even within urban areas like shown in 6:50 or 6:58 or 7:30. What is all this asphalt for? Why does a lane need to be 4 meters wide?

If people can't park in front of my shop, they won't come... That is about the most heard fallacy / misconception in the world. I think has to do with a particularly pernicious mental bias: people experience loss much more directly than gain... So if you say: we are going to take the parkingspots away they immediately "feel" the expected loss of those few customers who would not come because of that, while they don't trust the promisse of MORE customers coming back in return... This is why sometimes decisions for the common good just have to be implemented...

You might take a look at another dutch city. 's Hertogenbosch, a walled city with most of it's walls intact. Traffic wise there's just one big bottleneck, which is not easy to rectify, but they are trying. That said, it is a more pleasant city than anything the UK has to offer. At least, when you look at the way the newly built up area is considered.

Answer: Because it's always been this way, oh , and it's Britain.

Excellent narrative. Once again lack of joined up thinking in the general population stops meaningful change for the better and keeps people missing the opportunities for a better life. The road lobby is killing Britain.

UK: How do we make our destinations more attractive.. Let's replace all the lovely greenery and quaint quiet towns with tarmac, can't go wrong with tarmac right?

There is plenty of land suitable fot car parking near the town close to Bodlondeb and if coaches and cars were directed there from the a55 together with a park and drive shuttle much of the congestion during the Summer months would be eased.

I'd be interested to see a video of Knaresborough and Harrogate North Yorkshire. The A59 passes right through Knareborough centre the A59 is the high street. All throughout the day the cars trundle along and it's just bad cranky drivers and bedlam. I think it really spoils Knareborough and Harrogate because it's just so busy with traffic which is a real shame because they would otherwise be lovely towns.

There's no need to change Conwy, traffic moves through steadily (unless the tunnel is occasionally closed)

towns are simply nicer places to be when there is less traffic, the highstreet is dead because nobody wants to spend the day standing on the side of a busy road

I love Conway have had great memories going there as a kid.

lovely vid on a town I know well. the vision for what is possible without cars is clearly lacking throughout the uk. too much time spent comparing ourselves with our American cousins than our European counterparts

The infrastructure from GB is very bad. Only Londen is the exception, and the situation in the Nord is bad, that has to be much better. It's better to invest in the Nord than in London at the moment.

I have living in Naarden go there!!! Its a nice place❤

The netherlands has no elected mayors, only appointed ones after an application process

Anecdoctastic!

in ghent the narative of a war on motorists is actually true though it was a case of sealing off not a small historical town but a historical provincial capital city with over 200k people in it and a university. meanwhile the historical center had allready been a traffic free zone for years. there is a way in which these things should be done but the UK has utterly failed at it and the cause lays with where power is located and how badly people are informed, we complain about ghent and it has caused controversy but in the UK this is a non issue whilst the solution is relatively much simpler. Simply relocate cartravel to outside the walls and allow only deliveries and work verhicles on certain days or better yet with licenses and emergency verhicles and taxis on the others. that is what ghent did right, what ghent did wrong was extending this to far and to make the roadplan confusing whilst fining people for things they couldn't get around like students moving out of their dorms

Please could you do the talk in Conwy about it?

great video!

Great video 👍🏻👍🏻

Your microphone is clipping.

Lack of ambition is the issue

"Conwy has loads of parking" *cuts to clip of loads of street parking in the Netherlands* This video came up as suggested, and it's more of the same tired nonsense. Comparing two largely incomparable places and saying "look, cars bad". Yeah, ok, excessive traffic is unhealthy, we know. There's a bypass and there's a mass transport link (something Naarden doesn't have). What is Britain bad at exactly? Conwy wasn't designed for cars or trains, but it's adapted to both. If you don't like the existence of parking or trains in a place like this, don't visit it. It's not like they've knocked buildings down to build a shopping supercentre

Funny how a castle built to keep the Welsh out, today is a top Welsh tourist attraction.

Three bridges next to each other. Is that some sort of record?

So much more going on in Conway than in Caernarfon

Why are you referring to the town and river by the obsolete English name "Conway" in the narration? The proper Welsh name Conwy has officially been used for both since 1972 and is also the name of the local authority. Similarly the merchant's house there is Aberconwy House, not "Aberconway".

British towns were designed for aristocrats, not ordinary dwellers.

Poor people cant afford the train.

a town like conway is ideal for reducing car traffic. the problem is when its applied to a 1960's suberb it is stupid.

its nice in the winter

Town planning in Britain isn't given the importance it deserves. And many municipalities lack the autonomy to really enact many of the best ideas, due to the overbearing centralization of power in the UK.

I love north Wales

HET GOOI MENTIONED!

Consider the pop-filter. Focus on it's qualities, focus on it's strengths.

Have you ever stood in the car park of your local Tesco and watched people leaving. They wheel a massive trolley over to their car and load a mountain of bags into the boot. Even if they live within walking or cycling distance of the shop there is no way they could carry that lot home. So they drive. Now, in an ideal world people might walk to a local shop every two or three days and buy only what they can carry. But most people can’t be bothered to put in that extra effort, especially as they often work long hours and are too knackered after work to be lugging shopping bags around! Regarding places like Dubrovnik where traffic is banned…what happens if you live there and need a new fridge? Or need a plumber?

Sychan is pronounced "sih-khan" not "sie-kan"

You talk like a british G man

Where are the residents driving to/from??!

I can answer your question with just one word, without watching the video. Geology. Naarden is in the Netherlands, a country which is flat and mostly mud. Conwy is in Wales, built on rocky moutains. It's all mountains and valleys here. Most of Britain is hilly/moutainous, meaning roads and buildings have to be build around them. A little bit of thought goes a long way. Perhaps you would like to visit and ask a local? Please don't compare my country with another without research. Wales is unique. Gallaf ateb eich cwestiwn gydag un gair yn unig, heb wylio'r fideo. Daeareg. Mae Naarden yn yr Iseldiroedd, gwlad sy'n wastad ac yn fwd yn bennaf. Mae Conwy yng Nghymru, wedi ei adeiladu ar fynyddoedd creigiog. Mae'r cyfan yn fynyddoedd a dyffrynnoedd yma. Mae'r rhan fwyaf o Brydain yn fryniog/mynyddol, sy'n golygu bod yn rhaid adeiladu ffyrdd ac adeiladau o'u cwmpas. Mae ychydig o feddwl yn mynd yn bell. Efallai yr hoffech chi ymweld a holi rhywun lleol? Peidiwch â chymharu fy ngwlad ag un arall heb ymchwil. Mae Cymru yn unigryw.

Why have you got a foreign flag in the beginning, it’s Wales where’s the Welsh flag the Dragon

What is "Townsplaining"??

The narrator has a very nasally voice.

In my city Auckland they have narrowed the primary traffic concourse area Queen street and made large extensions of the train station system. Retailers have been hit hard, the crime rate has spiked and Auckland has spiralled into debt. Anti car ideology probably works in medieval towns with a storied legacy, but Auckland is a prime example of how large urban centres impede automobiles at their peril.

Whilst I agree with most of your points, you really are failing to see the forest through the trees when it comes to LTN's and ULEZ Zones. It is a climate pretense for the greater restrictions of movement to come, as well as the abolition of private vehicle ownership in the 2030's/40's, for us plebs only of course, not before making it nigh impossible and expensive to do so first as a shadow ban. The social credit system will ensure of this, and lock you into your neighbourhoods. I hate that is where we are heading, but better, pedestrian town planning is a must - with the exception of public transport, and for those who are elderly, disabled or with children. My biggest gripe with carphobic RU-vidrs is that they never take into consideration people with children. And with the growing number of dangerous non-natives flooding europe, there is not a chance in hell I would take my child on most forms of public transport, especially in larger cities, with the relative exception of trains. Our high trust societies are being destroyed, and with that comes the death of our public safety. It's all well and good wanting to walk and bike everywhere until you're robbed, mugged or worse by people with no ID and a machete. Having this opinion is not what you think it is, the R word so often used, but it is a simple fact. Feel free to pay £7.20 to rent a bike for 20 minutes each way in London from Lime or have yours stolen the second you leave it anywhere public, even locked. Homogeneity is key to building these high trust, safe and secure, walkable societies. Conwy is not what im talking about here, but wait until you're locked into your district in London, Birmingham, Bradford, Leeds etc.

Ireland was never a "colony". You talk about getting things right & yet make this major error. Perhaps you have accepted too much Irish republican propaganda at face value? Ireland was a separate Kingdom prior to 1801 and then fully part of the United Kingdom, a privilege never extended to such British places as the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man, let alone India, Canada, Australia, the American colonies etc etc.

If we banned cars in Wales we’d never be able to get anywhere because Westminster has a tendency to redirect Welsh transport funding to projects like HS2. Honestly, attracting tourists is secondary to people who actually live here being able to get around.

Naarden has massive geographical advantages which Conwy doesn't have, the main one being huge amounts of flat land which the town has spread out into. Also, Naarden is very close to massive urban areas and is easily accessed from them. Conwy, by contrast, is on a cramped, coastal site with hills all around. The two aren't really comparable. I think the fact you have compared them is so you can promote what seem to be some anti-car views. You even politicise the car issue, blaming "the right" for sticking up for motorists. But car ownership is now deep in the psyche of the British people. We don't really buy into the public transport ethos of some countries and I don't see that changing any time soon. We in Britain like the freedom that cars bring. Sure, they bring problems too but the average Briton is, at base, individualist and freedom-loving.

This is well made and well argued but it is hard to believe fewer cars in Conway would boost tourism. Tourism in Wales peaked in the 1970s. Being realistic the market is overwhelmingly English and there is good evidence there are a lot of negative views of Wales, especially in the rich South East. That is why there have been advertising campaigns in recent years. But this is controversial in North Wales where there is a fear of cultural dilution. As you say, it’s up to the people of Conway. I am not one of them but a planner and occasional visitor. Seems to me the people there have the town they want.

What a biased load of boll***s.Car parks are so expensive and now a pain in the neck because you have to download apps that we avoid them. We then look for parking in side streets . I go to Conway regularly. If you want to get the cars off the streets just make the car parks free and prohibit parking elsewhere in public ares except for the disabled.

Yeah well, our colonies are 100x better than the Ditch, so I'm so sick on that! Besides, pull the plug out of one of those dams and the Netherlands will be under water so cant be that great 😂