Oil Crisis? On your bike!

Oil Crisis? On your bike!

Forget traffic jams — looming oil price rises will soon put an end to them and reshape society as we know it, according to the controversial film "The End of Suburbia". "Most people misunderstand the coming oil crisis," says Paul Qualtrough, who has imported the film for a public screening. "We are showing this film to emphasise that it is about oil prices climbing steeply and steadily higher, because oil supply cannot keep up with demand. It is not about oil running out per se.

"The impact on the economy will be enormous — everyone will be affected," he says. "Here in Auckland, food prices will rise, jobs will be lost, suburban house prices will drop, and many things we take for granted now will eventually become too expensive for most people to do."

The film takes its title from its forecast that today’s suburbs will become tomorrow’s slums. It warns that no viable alternatives to oil are known at present, and so dramatic changes to our lifestyles are likely. Homes and workplaces will need to be much closer together, and walking and cycling will become the preferred ways to commute.

Despite the bleak predictions, Mr Qualtrough shares the film’s optimism. "This is an opportunity as much as a problem," he says. "We are a nation of pioneers and inventors. We will find solutions, and those solutions will be valuable exports. Those companies that start understanding the issue now will profit most from that opportunity."

The film will be screened this Thursday at 7.30pm at Three Kings’ Fickling Convention centre.

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