{"id":40592,"date":"2015-05-07T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-05-07T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/40592\/forget-the-new-traffic-law-heres-three-groups-actually-making-a-difference"},"modified":"2023-08-30T06:51:50","modified_gmt":"2023-08-30T06:51:50","slug":"forget-the-new-traffic-law-heres-three-groups-actually-making-a-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/en\/40592\/forget-the-new-traffic-law-heres-three-groups-actually-making-a-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"Forget the New Traffic Law, Here&#8217;s Three Groups Actually Making a Difference"},"content":{"rendered":"<big>Over the past few months, the internet\u2019s been <a href=\"https:\/\/stateofmind13.com\/2015\/03\/14\/what-you-need-to-know-about-lebanons-new-traffic-law\/\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">picking apart<\/a> the so-called \u201cnew traffic law\u201d that finally* came into effect on April 22 Phase two just <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailystar.com.lb\/News\/Lebanon-News\/2015\/May-01\/296467-second-phase-of-new-traffic-law-goes-into-effect-friday.ashx\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">rolled out a week ago<\/a> on May 1. The authorities are already giddy about how it&#8217;s going, but it&#8217;s still too early to know what kind of impact this will have on the driving experience in Lebanon in the long run.<\/big><br \/>  <br \/>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-3-250x162.png\" width=\"100%\"><br \/>  A policeman distributes pamphlets of the new traffic law to drivers in Beirut, Wednesday, April 22, 2015. (Image via <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailystar.com.lb\/News\/Lebanon-News\/2015\/May-01\/296467-second-phase-of-new-traffic-law-goes-into-effect-friday.ashx\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">The Daily Star\/Mohammad Azakir<\/a>)<br \/>  <br \/>  <big>Ever since Marcel Ghanem <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lbcgroup.tv\/watch\/21312\/new-traffic-law\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">featured the law on his show<\/a>, the country\u2019s been buzzing about the law (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.naharnet.com\/stories\/en\/176610\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">and more<\/a>). Critics of the law have been focusing on its super-high penalties, but several astute commentators have also pointed out the mismatch between the logic of law and current state of Lebanon\u2019s infrastructure, as summarised by one taxi driver who said: \u201cBefore implementing the new law, the government should work on improving the roads in Lebanon. We need better lighting, fewer potholes and less traffic.\u201d<br \/>  <br \/>  See <a href=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/rlzpmCt.jpg?1\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">this graphic<\/a> with \u2018fines\u2019 against the government for infrastructure \u2018violations\u2019.<br \/>  <br \/>  In response, a few voices have come out in defense of the legal reform, <a href=\"https:\/\/blogbaladi.com\/stop-attacking-the-new-traffic-law\/\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">arguing that the lack of adequate infrastructure<\/a> is \u201cnot an excuse for not abiding by the new rules and becoming a better driver.\u201d In some ways, this chicken-and-egg situation (infrastructure-and-behavior) is a false dilemma. Activists used to lobbying parliament may see parallels between the situation that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/1398377423748393\/photos\/pb.1398377423748393.-2207520000.1430138887.\/1563543820565085\/?type=3&#038;theater\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">civil society groups who back the new traffic law<\/a> are in to the problem that many rights-oriented NGOs deal with: what should we start with? The institutional framework (nousous) or the \u2018soul\u2019 (noufous)? For advocates of issues like civil marriage and the right of women to give their children the Lebanese nationality, the abstract smugness of \u201cfirst this, then that\u201d rhetoric really is just an excuse, and a sneaky way of perpetuating the same old balance of powers that be.<br \/>  <br \/>  And yet, in the case of transportation as a subset of the built environment, it\u2019s hard to see where infrastructure ends and behavior begins. The way our cities are put together has a powerful effect on how we use them, and as a complex system involving an almost endless chains of issues &#8212; from car-centric urban planning to Beirut-centric economic development to labor union fragmentation to public transport stigmatization &#8212; the last thing we need now is encampment around particular ways of doing activism. Indeed, even the field of road safety management &#8212; whose local champions are the biggest supporters of the new law &#8212; is <a href=\"https:\/\/worldtransportjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/wtpp21.1.pdf\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">beginning to acknowledge<\/a> the need for \u201csafe systems thinking\u201d that takes into account roads, vehicles, speeds *and* people.<br \/>  <br \/>  So instead of splitting the debate along the lines of infrastructure versus behavior, legal reform versus service provision, or even lobbying versus raising awareness, activists might win more hearts and minds by looking for creative ways to have a direct impact on people\u2019s lives. In other words, activism can do with being a little more active.<br \/>  <br \/>  A few groups out there have already started getting their hands dirty with a few <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smithsonianmag.com\/innovation\/tactical-urbanists-are-improving-cities-one-rogue-fix-at-a-time-180955049\/?no-ist\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">\u201ctactical fixes\u201d<\/a> that &#8212; if linked up in a way that maximizes their impact &#8212;  might help set a precedent for activists in more than just the transport sector. In this post, we will highlight just three, focusing on groups working to furnish our roads with basic infrastructure through creative methods and partnerships:<\/big><br \/>  <br \/>  <b><big><big>1. Rotaract Bus Stop Project<\/big><\/big><\/b><br \/>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-6-250x141.png\" width=\"100%\"><br \/>  (Image via Facebook)<br \/>  <br \/>  <big>According to project coordinator Jean-Marc Adaimi, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pages\/Bus-Stops-Project-Rotaract\/296200177209162?fref=ts\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">Rotaract Bus Stop Project<\/a> was intended to \u201cserve the community\u201d by addressing an actual need, and \u201cnot just setting a goal and talking about it.\u201d This meant servicing the country\u2019s bus network as it is, even if it does not always \u201cfollow certain criteria,\u201d as he put it, revealing a mix of pragmatism and far-sightedness to the project that\u2019s not always seen in discussions of public transport in Lebanon. <br \/>  <br \/>  The Bus Stop Project began around March 2014 when a team drawn from seven Rotaract clubs from across Lebanon began discussing the best way of pursuing a sustainability agenda. They quickly identified bus shelters as an immediate need and a concrete way to promote public transport. Rotaract\u2019s bus shelter was designed \u2018in house\u2019 (Adaimi is an architect) and funded through various creative ventures, including taking part in and winning first place in a rally paper organised by NDU.<br \/>  <br \/>  To decide where to put the shelters, the team began with the standard <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lccworld.com\/lebanese-commuting-company-routes-map\/\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">LCC bus map<\/a>, but very quickly moved on to coordinate with local municipalities to figure out where buses actually pass. The team also conducted field research to settle on the best spot for each shelter.<br \/>  <br \/>  Seven shelters in total have been installed, one in each participating Rotaract club region. According to Adaimi, their hope is that this phase would \u201ccreate a snowball effect\u201d by providing bus riders and decision-makers with a \u201cprototype\u201d they can see in action, and, indeed, one municipality has already been impressed enough to adopt the design and produce more shelters, in coordination with the local Rotaract chapter in their area.<\/big><br \/>  <br \/>  <b><big><big>2. ODDD+D16 Sustainable Transport Project<\/big><\/big><\/b><br \/>  <br \/>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-7.png\" width=\"100%\"><br \/>  (Source: ODDD FB page)<br \/>  <br \/>  <big>A similar project** was undertaken by ODDD+D16, a group of students at USEK headed by university instructor and Organisation De D\u00e9veloppement Durable founder Eliesh Sahyoun. While Rotaract focussed on creating a prototype that could be installed relatively quickly, ODDD was interested in experimenting with creating a site-specific bus shelter from low-impact materials, based on a series of research projects (e.g. the position of the sun in the area over time).<br \/>  <br \/>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-2-250x117.png\" width=\"100%\"><br \/>  (Source: ODDD FB page) <br \/>  <br \/>  From this research, ODDD+D16 also produced a series of infographics that helped clarify various aspects of the public transport sector, showing snapshots of a system that seems random and chaotic to those unfamiliar with <a href=\"https:\/\/i.imgur.com\/ttb1Dss.jpg\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">how it works<\/a>.<br \/>  <br \/>  Despite being a smaller scale project than Rotaract\u2019s, the amount of research put into ODDD+D16\u2019s initiative shows another way that the \u201csnowball effect\u201d that Jean-Marc Adaimi spoke about might be achieved &#8212; i.e. by simply making the transit system easier for people to understand and use, targeting spaces that might not register on most people\u2019s map of the country. When seen together, projects like Rotaract\u2019s and ODDD\u2019s &#8212; if linked up and expanded across the country &#8212; could reverse decades of misconceptions about Lebanon\u2019s post-war transport system, as well as open up avenues for specific, incremental improvements in different areas.<\/big><br \/>  <br \/>  <b><big><big>3. Kunhadi<\/big><\/big><\/b><br \/>  <br \/>  <big>Sometimes what needs improving is so small that the fix goes unnoticed. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kunhadi.org\/en\/Home\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">Kunhadi<\/a> is best known for their awareness campaigns, but since 2010, the NGO has also started installing pedestrian crossings in front of schools, and retro-reflective markings on various highways (e.g. Antelias-Bikfaya, Airport-Jiyyeh, Tripoli, Faraya):<br \/>  <br \/>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-5-188x250.png\" width=\"100%\"><br \/>  (Source: Kunhadi Facebook page)<br \/>  <br \/>  What\u2019s most interesting about Kunhadi\u2019s approach is their openness to creative partnerships; to fund their projects, Kunhadi has been sponsored by groups as diverse as Roadsters Diner and the Kataeb Party. Purists might frown at the very large signs that have accompanied Kunhadi\u2019s installations and call their approach a marketing stunt, but the very fact that these basic road markings need private funding makes the high visibility of Kunhadi\u2019s partners an indirect protest against state neglect.<br \/>  <br \/>  Of course, not all activist interventions are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailystar.com.lb\/News\/Lebanon-News\/2014\/May-14\/256360-mayor-pokes-hole-in-beirut-bike-path-bid.ashx\" target=\"_new\" rel=\"noopener\">well thought out<\/a> or sustainable over the long term &#8212; who will maintain the bus shelter or zebra crossing after its been installed? More broadly, taking a DIY approach to urban infrastructure should not mean that the strategy of lobbying policymakers is totally abandoned &#8212; after all, there would be no need for activists to step in and serve a need if the government was already on it. But what is for sure is that NGOs need to build up their capacity to step in when necessary, because some things just can\u2019t wait.<br \/>  <br \/>  * This \u201cnew\u201d law is actually a law passed in 2012, then \u201csuspended\u201d after protests by taxi drivers\u2019 unions, then reinstated last June, but that\u2019s another story.<br \/>  <br \/>  **  Rotaract and ODDD coordinated by co-convening debate nights around the topic of public transport, but worked independently. <\/big><br \/>      <figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"188\" height=\"250\" data-id=\"417713\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-188x250.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-417713\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-188x250.png 188w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-451x600.png 451w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592.png 526w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 188px) 100vw, 188px\" \/><\/figure><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"98\" data-id=\"417715\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-1-250x98.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-417715\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-1-250x98.png 250w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-1-600x234.png 600w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-1-768x300.png 768w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-1.png 1010w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 250px) 100vw, 250px\" \/><\/figure><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"117\" data-id=\"417717\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-2-250x117.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-417717\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-2-250x117.png 250w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-2-600x280.png 600w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-2-1024x477.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-2-768x358.png 768w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-2.png 1109w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 250px) 100vw, 250px\" \/><\/figure><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"162\" data-id=\"417719\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-3-250x162.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-417719\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-3-250x162.png 250w, 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srcset=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-5-188x250.png 188w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-5-450x600.png 450w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-5.png 675w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 188px) 100vw, 188px\" \/><\/figure><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"250\" height=\"141\" data-id=\"417725\" src=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-6-250x141.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-417725\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-6-250x141.png 250w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-6-600x338.png 600w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-6-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.beirut.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/40592-6.png 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 250px) 100vw, 250px\" \/><\/figure><\/figure>    ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Over the past few months, the internet\u2019s been picking apart the so-called \u201cnew traffic law\u201d that finally* came into effect on April 22 Phase two just rolled out a week ago on May 1.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":417727,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ai_generated_summary":"","_preview_accessed":0,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"media-embed-type":[],"class_list":["post-40592","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"authorship":[21],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.8 (Yoast SEO v27.8) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Forget the New Traffic Law, Here&#039;s Three Groups Actually Making a Difference<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Over the past few months, the 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