Efficient public transport contributes to good health

PRIVATE TRANSPORT, PARTICULARLY CAR USE, IS A MAJOR CONTRIBUTOR TO THE

RISE IN TOXIC EMISSIONS ACROSS THE GLOBE
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By: Linda Bolido
@inquirerdotnet
02:30 AM August 5th, 2015
THE WOEFUL inadequacy of public transport is not just a traffic problem because of
the gridlocks that too many private vehicles cause, but is also a health issue. The
commuters who waste time standing in line to squeeze into the MRT and LRT, buses
and jeepneys are not just stressed, but are inhaling the toxic fumes, particularly
carbon monoxide, that motor vehicles emit.

Steve Williams, in the online piece Public Transport: It Could Help Us Save Our
Cities and Our Health, said that an efficient mass transport system would not only
decongest roads, but also reduce pollution and help keep people healthy, which
would ease the strain on overcrowded government health facilities.

Williams, writing for Care2.com, cited a research paper, The Global High Shift
Scenario, which suggested that if we want cities that are less polluted and want to
guard the health of future generations, ditching cars for public transport, or better
yet, cycling and walking, might be the easiest thing we could do.

Conducted by a team from University of California and Institute for Transportation

and Development Policy (ITDP), the research found that the easiest way to cut
traffic air pollution by 2050, a goal for United Nations member states, was for
people to use public transport, walk or cycle.
Williams quoted researchers who said: This would represent the least pain for the
most gain out of any action a city dweller could take.

Global warming

Public transport, the researchers found, could cut carbon monoxide emissions from
city transport by as much as 40 percent. As other studies had already found, private
transport, particularly car use, was a major contributor to the rise in toxic emissions
across the globe. These emissions have a significant impact on global warming or
the rise in average global temperatures.

Williams noted that as urban areas continued to grow, polluted cities would mean
higher rates of respiratory diseases and certain heart conditions: Things like
asthma and other allergies appear to correlate with rising pollution levels, as do
certain cardiac events and, possibly, some cancers, he said.

Research co-author and ITDP managing director Michael Replogle pointed out that
if we want to ensure a healthy and greener future, this (public transport) is
something we cant afford to miss. Repogle said transportation, particularly car
use, was the fastest growing source of toxic fumes in the world.

The report said that investment in non-motorized forms of transport, like better
cycle lanes, should be given priority. It also suggested that the government should
consider making it harder for people to have cars by, for instance, providing fewer
parking spaces and parking garages, ensuring that only those who really need to
use their own vehicles, such as people with limited mobility or those with young
families, are being catered to.

The report warned that, as urban population density worsened, gridlock problems
would spread and would be more difficult to solve.

The report urged developing nations to start adopting more efficient public
transport and make walking and biking safer to maximize their growth potential
because, otherwise, they will run up against problems like air pollution and
overcrowding further down the line

Developing nations could also improve the health of their people and increase their
productivity.

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