number of active vehicles on the streets and the growth of vehicles for the sole purpose of providing for-hire transportation, which will inherently require longer than average vehicle miles, have been a concern for policymakers who seek to improve air quality, reduce pollution, and combat global climate change. Recent epidemiological studies have also shown elevated risks of non-allergic respiratory morbidity, cardiovascular morbidity, cancer, allergies, adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes, and diminished male fertility for drivers, commuters, and individuals living near roadways. The lack of sufficient data to correctly measure the impact of the expansion rate of Uber and other TNCs in many cities has exacerbated the problem. These companies …show more content…
A series of high profile crashes involving the deaths of pedestrians in the beginning of 2014 prompted Mayor de Blasio to quickly fulfill his campaign promise by announcing, on January 15, 2014, the creation of the Vision Zero task force comprised of representatives from the New York City Police Department, the New York City Department of Transportation (“NYC DOT”), the TLC and NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The task force was charged with developing a comprehensive Vision Zero roadmap to eliminate deadly traffic crashes, especially those involving pedestrians. In a little over a month, on February 18, 2014, the task force developed an action plan with 63 recommendations to reduce traffic deaths. The action plan contains proposals for several City agencies, and includes several state and city legislative initiatives. Working in partnership with the Mayor, the New York City Council adopted an historic package of 11 bills, and six resolutions to help implement Vision Zero.
Many of these initiatives are implemented with new technology that helps correct human errors and enforce laws. Vision Zero is not a new idea. Sweden first developed the idea of a Vision Zero Plan in 1995. By 1997, Sweden had adopted legislation to implement the goals of eliminating traffic fatalities and serious deaths by 2020, and implemented several initiatives including annual evaluations of road data. Vision Zero would not be possible without analysis of data involving traffic and crashes. With TNCs logging more miles every year, it is important to have their trip data to support any Vision Zero
Since the birth of automobiles in 1866, the majority of mankind has relied heavily on this mode of transportation, especially in the United States. According to the California DMV there are 24,290,288 licensed drivers in California (DMV, 2013), which is approximately 63.3% of the population. Ever since the invention of automobiles, gas emission into the atmosphere has become one of the biggest issues for mankind. In Garret Hardin’s essay, The Tragedy of the Commons, Hardin defines a common as a resource that is accessible for everyone in society. Clean air became a modern commons in this sense. The quality of air is especially bad in California where there are 31,388,901 registered vehicles for a population of 37,826,160. In 2012, the quality of air hit a record low in California’s Central Valley. If we continue to dismiss the issue of air pollution, we will gravely endanger our health as current air pollution related health effects already include lung diseases and cancer. The solutions to the smog pollution problem are to develop cleaner emission engines, as part of a technical solution, as well as raise awareness among the residents of the Central Valley.
... 15 to 25 percent in the number of miles people drive, hours of vehicle travel and projected pollution from a sprawl development forecast over the next 20 years. We can only hope that more equitable regulations will be set forth to lower pollution and help save the public health from its tragic downfall.
Andrew Simms, a policy director and head of the Climate Change Program for the New Economics Foundation in England, presents his argument about the impact SUV’s have on our roadways, and the air we breathe. “Would You Buy a Car That Looked like This? “. The title alone gives great insight on what the article is going to be about, (vehicles). “They clog the streets and litter the pages of weekend colour *supplements. Sport utility vehicles or SUV’s have become badges of middle class aspiration” (Simms 542). Simms opening statement not only gives his opinion on how SUV’s are the new trend, but he also paints a picture of what we see every day driving down our roadways. Simms also compares the tobacco industry’s gap between image and reality to that of SUV’s; stating that the cause and consequences of climate change resemble smoking and cancer. Simms comparison between SUV’s and cigarettes shows how dangerous he believes SUV’s are.
Shacknai, Daniel, Meta B. Ribowsky, Francis X. Gribbon, and Stephen Antonelli. FDNY Strategic Plan 2011-2013. Ed. Janet Kimmerly. New York: FDNY, 2011. FDNY Intranet. Web. 03 Mar. 2014. .
There will be a day when driving will not require a license. Children will be traveling on their own, teens will be texting while driving, adults will be doing their jobs while driving, and the elderly who are visually or physically impaired will be able to transport themselves (Symonds). This will be made possible through new technological car advancements that will enable a car to be driverless. With technology increasing exponentially, and our everyday lives getting busier and busier, we need a solution. Weeks of productivity are lost each year by Americans (Pollette). Driverless cars will cause this issue to vanish by reducing delays and smoothing traffic flow (Winston). Most technology will have flaws, and this is also true for driverless cars’ technology. Improvements are being made to enhance the car (Pollette), but accidents will still take place. Despite the flaws, driverless cars will make trips shorter, and when trips are long, we will be able to multitask.
Uber needs to focus its entry into densely populated areas of Canada lacking a well developed public transit system. These opportunities can easily be taken advantage of if Uber was to further develop its existing strengths.
Zipcar was founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1999, based off of the European model of car-sharing, and has grown to the large member based car rental of today (Zipcar, 2016). Zipcar began, strangely enough as an alternative transportation method to decongest the streets, fewer cars, and ultimately less pollution. The Zipcar team believes that they are working toward a brighter, greener future by utilizing their service. Furthermore, they can back up these claims with facts; “Each and every Zipcar takes 13 personally-owned vehicles off the road. Multiply that by the thousands of cars in our fleet and you've got a really big number” (Zipcar, 2016). Moreover, Zipcar claims that around ninety percent of members drove less than 5,500 miles
Vehicles are responsible for up to eighty percent of air pollution in Mexico. There are close to four million automobiles, buses, and trucks in the city, the average of which is ten years old, and thus in poor repair with ineffective emission controls. Emissions are increased by the excessive traffic compressed into narrow streets with few parking spaces, requiring low-speed cruising (Collins, 125). Even new engines oft...
Today, people use their own personal vehicles to travel more than ever before. Personal transportation is no longer considered a luxury; it is now considered a necessity. The number of cars in the United States has been growing steadily since the 1970s. The number of miles traveled by cars has risen nearly 150 percent, yet the United States population has only grown roughly 40 percent during that time (hybridcars.com, Driving Trends). Although it may seem like we are advancing into the future, in reality, we are moving backwards from the effects these vehicles have on our bodies and the environment. The pollution produced by these vehicles has brought us to the day where we must find other modes of transportation that cause less harm to the world in which we live. Advances in technology have developed hybrid vehicles to try and slow down the amount of pollution. Driving a hybrid vehicle, instead of a conventional gas powered vehicle, can reduce the amount of pollution that affects our lives and the environment around us.
Automobiles and its related manufacturing contribute to the degradation of the environment causing great concerns from consumers, governments, policy makers and environmentalists, regarding the economy and global warming. This resulted in market changes, due to new environmental laws, legislations, standards, product requirements and consumer wants. The gasoline engine produces emissions that are deadly for the environment, hence the big race by the automobile producers to develop an efficient alternative fuel/energy for powering its vehicles. Deloite (2014) ‘In 2012, new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards were released in the U.S. that requires automakers to raise the average fuel efficiency of new cars and trucks to 54.5 MPG by 2025.’ (“Global Automotive Consumer Study”, 2014, p.4) The industry is engaged in research and development to develop more efficient internal combustion engines, electric vehicles (EVs), plug-in hybrids, and vehicles powered by natural gas. The government offers incentives in the form of rebates for the purchase and sale of energy efficient
OTA stated that based on current trends in population and travel … the number of vehicle-miles traveled (VMT) nationwide is projected to increase by 2 to 3 percent per year from now through 2005, resulting in a cumulative increase of about 40 to 60 percent. Obviously, VMT growth could have a major impact on traffic flow in urban areas, as well as on air pollution (84).
Many people sharing one polluting vehicle is better than each driving their own. For many people this is becoming an important issue.
The fast population growth rate of humans means that the necessity for transportation vehicles is also enormously increasing. Studies have shown that in 1999 the worldwide number of vehicles registered was 700 million. From this huge number of vehicles, the US has a large share, which includes 200 million cars and light trucks. The number of cars worldwide also grew three times faster Competition for good things like public health, making the earth safe to live are positive aspects of competition, but global competition can also have a downside concerning the environment. This is true for the production of vehicles, as companies are coming with designs and new models with improved engines, but fuel consumption and the pollution of the air remains the same.
Since the invention of the automobile, we have been able to decrease transportation costs, travel vast distances and decrease travel times. We are able to facilitate relationships, foster trade between places, and find better jobs. However, due to the inaccurate pricing of the roads, driving cars has turned from an innovation to pure frustration. The problem is traffic congestion; the increased usage of cars has created slower speeds and longer travel times due to greater demand for the road than the road has to offer. Roughly 3.4 million Americans endure extreme commutes, in which the trip to work and back eats up at least three hours each day (Balaker, Staley 2006).
In this modern era, the level of pollution worldwide has been increasing consistently which in turn has brought harm to humans via many different ways. Consequently, the government must find a solution to solve this problem as speedily as possible. However, banning the ownership of private vehicles is not the only and definitely not the best way to decrease pollution. Although carbon emissions from vehicles do contribute towards a significant amount of pollution, banning the ownership of private vehicles in modern day society is unnecessary because pollution can also be caused by many other factors such as bad lifestyle choices on humanity’s part, lack of stricter or enforcement of environmental laws by governments as well as the fact that vehicles are an essential part of modern city life.