Tourism Is Eating the World.

The inevitable rise of congestion pricing will be bad news for the emerging global middle class. It means that the dream of cheap globetrotting will never be for everyone -- at least, not if you want to go to famous places.

For a short amount of time I pondered the idea whether a more random method channelling tourists might be a better alternative – think of a lottery for those popular, famous or at least overcrowded places. But even if it would work in a usable, easy and transparent way, the systemic condition most likely would lead to a similar outcome: winning lots would be sold to the best bidder on a side / black market, a service industry managing the lottery participation for those who can afford would arise etc. Thus, the general problem of making bad things more expensive and thus only allowing the wealthy to “enjoy” them is deeply rooted in our cultural, political and societal framework named capitalism.