Transportation is a crucial activity in our lives. It allows us to easily venture across roads, neighborhoods, towns, and cities to reach our desired destinations. One of the most popular modes of transportation, for instance, is transportation by car, according to Statista’s Global Consumer Survey in 2019, in which the survey reported that 86 percent of American commuters utilize cars as their preferable mode of mobility. Considering the reduced commuting times and convenience of car transport, it is not surprising to identify automobiles, such as cars, as the preferred mode of transportation. However, the relatively high usage of automobiles for transportation due to their convenience poses significant issues for the environment. The environmental impacts brought by transportation use, such as air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, possibly outweigh the ease of travel with conventional methods of transportation.
According to the EPA greenhouse gas emissions generated from transportation are responsible for 29 percent of total U.S greenhouse gas emissions, which makes it the largest contributor of U.S greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse gas emissions negatively affect efforts to protect the environment, as they allow heat to become trapped in the atmosphere which ultimately leads to an increase in temperatures in our oceans and planet. The greenhouse gases emitted by automobile transportation also lead to global warming and climate change, as the heat emitted by the gases such as carbon dioxide, trapped in the atmosphere inevitably lead to higher temperatures.
With this in mind, what are some alternative modes of transportation that we can take to reduce long-term environmental damage? Because of the significant role transportation plays in our lives, several “green” alternatives exist to diminish the environmental impact of one of our daily tasks. Some examples of sustainable transportation include carpooling, cycling, walking, transit, scootering, skateboarding, car sharing, and green vehicles. While this may seem to be a dramatic shift from our usual forms of mobility, various benefits are present in such changes to our routine. To illustrate, cycling, walking, skateboarding, and scootering will likely lead to healthier lifestyles and physical wellbeing due to the addition of exercise in one’s routine. If one’s destination is too far, however, then transit is a preferable sustainable alternative that offers reduced transportation costs in comparison with gasoline costs required for traditional automobiles. Increased social interaction resulting from carpooling, carsharing, and community-related activities such as cycling also presents a great incentive for becoming more sustainable in the form of transportation. Moreover, choosing sustainable forms of transportation will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution, and traffic congestion, all of which ultimately lead to a vibrant, healthy environment in the future.
Sources:
Yarely Aguilar The Carbon Newsprint
Comments