Of course when I'm talking about public transport, I mean buses and trains. The expense of plane journeys and ferries are so expensive it isn't even worth considering (although in my opinion, prices could still come down a lot more, I blame B.A). There are many arguments for and against this issue but again for the sake of your time I won't be going over all of them, just a few of the key points that should be brought to people's attention. Let me give you a few statistics that are necessary when considering the issue of free public transport:
- In the US alone there are 250million cars on the road.
- Each car on average produces 5.2 metric tons of CO2 per year. That is a grand total of: 1,300,000,000 metric tons of CO2 per year (that is 1billion 300million just in case you don't read numbers).
- In the UK there are 33million vehicles on the road. 27million of these are cars.
- 22% of UK emissions are from road transport.
Shocking isn't it? Okay well it's gone down a bit but you get the picture...For more details and more statisitcs, check out http://www.airquality.co.uk/
Let us get on to the debate with the facts in mind. One of the largest barriers to sustainability is of course the use of motor vehicles as a primary use to get around the country. The concerns of global warming are rising all the time and we have developed and are developing technology for cleaner and safer vehicles producing less emissions. For example, we could use natural gas powered cars and buses. This alone would reduce emissions greatly. Using hydrogen or hybrid vehicles is the way forward for sure, but with new ideas comes a heavy cost. Given the facts I have just stated, and the amount of CO2 emissions road transport produces, that is reason enough to make public transport free...right? WRONG. It isn't. Sorry if you guessed 'right'...
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| Use buses, they are really safe... |
The old adage goes, 'nothing in life is free'. In the true spirit of economics, nothing but the air we breathe and the love we give and recieve is free in life. At the end of the day everything has a cost whether we like it or not. It is all well and good saying "make public transposrt free!" (or words to that effect, that's what I'd shout if I was protesting) but there is a layoff with regard to who pays for it. What would happen if it all became free? Well if you read on, I'm about to tell you...
The people who end up using this public transport day in and day out do not pay for it. This does not mean however that no one has to foot the bill. Any guesses as to who will pay for it? Yes that's right, you. Well not just you. That would be pretty worrying...of course when I say 'you', I mean the tax-payer. No such thing in today's world is free. The drivers have to be paid and the buses filled up with petrol or diesel or whatever those things need and they all have to be maintained. All of that comes at a huge cost, and if it was to become free, then taxes would inevitably rise and the government would bleed money from us from somewhere else.
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| Go on, I dare you... |
At the end of the day I believe public transport is actually affordable. Otherwise no one would use it. Personally, I hate buses and I'm not the biggest fan of trains. I'm not scared of them, no no no, but I just hate the idea. Driving my own car for me is my personal space, I can play music, and listen to whatever I want and whatever noise level I want. This cannot be done on a bus or train. I know there are ipods but you always get some miserable sod who walks up or leans over to you so say, "can you turn that down please?"...to which my initial response in my head is, "No. Piss off!"...but of course I politely say, "yes of course, sorry." Is that just me??? Anyway I've gone off topic.
Here are some very tedious ways to reduce your emissions:
- Avoid using the car for short journeys, get the bike out, dust it down and keep fit! Or just walk.
- Lighten up - not in your mood but in the weight of your car, take off roof racks, people and items out of your boot. It really does make a difference and it will save you money!
- Steady your speed - for all you boy and girl racers out there, relax, there's no hurry.
- Avoid using air conditioning and other on board electrical appliances, this increases your fuel consumption.
- Share your journeys.
Okay, you can stop cringing now...but I am just trying to help you!
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| How I imagine you right now... |
There is a difference between making public transport free and encouraging people to use it as their mode of transport. But it doesn't matter what people say, I will always use my car.
All the best,
Ben x
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