You Do Have Some Control at Traffic Lights
A set of traffic lights is programmed to do a basic thing but is also controlled by the way that the traffic moves around them.
The basic thing that a traffic light will do is to give a green light flow of traffic along the main direction of a given street or road. Obviously, when a car, motorbike or truck arrives at the lights from a “side” direction, they drive onto the pressure pads that sit under the road. They are often a square or rectangle shape that you can see on the road surface in that last 2-3 metres before you get to the white line.
Every now and then I see a car pull up further back than the pressure pads in the road surface. No doubt they sit there wondering why the lights don’t change for them. The truth is that the lights don’t know that you are there until you roll onto the pads. In cases like this, the lights will not change until another car arrives, perhaps in a second lane or perhaps in the lane travelling in the opposite direction.
Once the lights change to green for your direction of travel, the pressure pads keep a check on how many vehicles drive over them, in that same direction of travel. While cars continuously drive over the pressure pads, the lights are likely to stay green for longer to allow that build-up of traffic to be served by the green. At the same time, the pressure pads will quickly respond to a gap – this means a car leaving a large gap between itself and the car in front. When a longer time passes with no pressure on the pads (i.e. a large gap), the traffic lights will become convinced that the traffic build up has been solved. We are talking fractions of seconds here.
The traffic lights are always looking to get back to their default basic setting – green light for the main direction of traffic flow. If you want to keep the light green for longer, for people travelling in your direction, then stay alert and respond quickly and move in a steady and continuous line of traffic. A distracted driver creates a time gap and shortens the green light experience.
The Importance of the Hunter Valley Operations (HVO) Coal Mine
Currently in the planning system and trying to get approval for mining coal out until the year 2045, is the Hunter Valley Operations (HVO) mine.
In NSW, our planning system often requires that an application like HVO’s is considered by an Independent Planning Commission (IPC). The IPC is made up of 3 highly qualified and experienced people that take on the role of considering all of the complex and important impacts and outcomes of the project. The IPC is, as its name suggests, independent of Government. This allows the IPC to make its decisions without any need to keep happy the Government of the day.
The independence of the IPC actually provides me with the opportunity to make some comments on the HVO application without any concern that I might influence the work of the Commission. In simple terms, they do not care what I think.
I have a view that the HVO project and the need for its approval is essential to the future of the Hunter economy – particularly the middle and upper parts of the Hunter.
The HVO project is about far more than just one mine. The HVO decision will have an impact on how many different companies, and their Boardrooms, and different foreign Governments, think about NSW as a place to make massive investments and do business. If HVO is refused, my concern is that the broader confidence in coal projects across NSW will be sucked out. Those making investment decisions around the globe will put a big red X through NSW.
Why does this matter? Well, it matters because our economy and our hard-working families will not be able to adjust to a very sudden stop in foreign investment in coal projects. If it helps, think of the Newcastle BHP decision and multiply those impacts by 10. Maybe 20!
Yes, coal jobs would be lost. Thousands of them. Immediately! What would also be lost would be all of that money being taken out of our local economy. Money will disappear from cafes, clothing stores, car yards, bike shops, clubs, pubs, take away stores, etc etc etc.
There is billions of dollars circulating in our Hunter economy, every year, on the back of coal. Don’t get me wrong – I realise that all of those foreign companies do what they do for profit and not because they have some generous love for the Hunter community. But at the moment, we need each other.
And here is the extra kicker to all of this – there is an unknown and unknowable flow on effect to the international confidence of doing trade with NSW. It might, or might not, have an impact on our export of beef or wine or education or other manufacturing. Once we get the big red X to our name, the rest is a guess.
A decision on the HVO project, by the Independent Planning Commission, is one that will have me holding my breath. A refusal/rejection will directly affect all of us.