Today on Highways Voices, we talk “the madness of cars” with journalist and author Peter Hitchens, who is writing a book with that name arguing that Britain’s transport infrastructure has wrongly been built around the motor vehicle, and that we are suffering today from the effects of flawed transport policy of the 1960s onwards.

He talks about how he thinks our transport planners and users are locked in a transport system that doesn’t work, and explains how we arrived here, with decades of prioritising road expansion, dismantling rail and tram systems, and shaping cities around cars. He talks about what it would have to take to rebuild a transport network that actually works for efficiency, resilience, and long-term public value.

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You’ll hear a lesson about how historical policy decisions continue to drive today’s congestion, land-use challenges, operational inefficiencies, and public-health impacts. He discusses the view that adding more roads rarely solves congestion, and about alternatives that could increase capacity without inducing more traffic and how thoughtful city planning can complement modern highway networks to create scalable, multimodal mobility.

Press play now to hear why rethinking car-centric design could unlock more capacity, lower costs, and create a more resilient future for the highways and mobility systems you help shape.

Highways Voices is brought to you with our partners the Transport Technology Forum, LCRIG, ADEPT and ITS UK.

(Picture – Mail on Sunday/Yay Images)