1.

 The car/automobile that used to be worshipped as a super-powerful means of transportation.

 The popularity of cars compared to other types of transportation in the 1960s, when cars were
considered sacred and appeared everywhere in Birmingham.

2.

 Be unused or be wasted (as a result of the inner Birmingham car-free proposals).

 (of motorways) be abandoned or unused.

3.

 from indispensable/unavoidable troubles to harmful threats, which refers to the traffic situation
in many urban cities.

 from an uncomfortable but essential traffic system to a harmful threat that must be eliminated
due to the congestion it has caused.

4.

 large size/scope/vast extent (of its initial goal, which was to reconstruct at least half of the city
with motorways and towers).

5.

 a narrow escape from a dangerous scenario in which pedestrians were forced to use podiums
instead of the ground level to leave space for motorways.

 a narrow ascape from an unpleasant scenario, which implies that a timely halt to Abercrombie's
plans had saved the city from turning to a congested disaster.

 a narrow escape from dangerous situation, which implies that London was saved from being a
congested disaster like Birmingham.

6.

 learn to accept the mistakes/failures (in their planning for cars and modernist architecture).