REALity Volume XXXVI Issue No. 5 May 2017
On November 15, 2016, 15 inches of snow fell on Stockholm. The government of Stockholm was controlled by a Left-Green coalition which ordered that bike paths and sidewalks be given priority for snow removal over the roads because women were increasingly walking and cycling more than men. The rationale for this was provided by Daniel Hellden, the Green Party’s Vice-Mayor of traffic. He stated:
It hurt more when you fall when walking and cycling, while those who drive are comfortable no matter whether it’s snowing. It is about three times as many pedestrians who are injured, than motorists, in weather like this . . . But there is also an accessibility argument that the city should be accessible to all. Snow and ice keeps many at home. Above all, it affects women who increasingly are walking and cycling more than men.
Chaos resulted. Buses (heavily used by women) were stuck by the hundreds on roads blocked by stalled cars. Light rail trains moved at half speed, forcing stranded commuters to walk for hours to get home from work, slipping and falling on glasslike sidewalks and bike paths. Others stayed home with children as schools shut down.
This is a striking example of the huge gap between the leftist ideological beliefs with lack of common sense, and living in real life.