Travel, Transport and Sustainability - Essay Example

Introduction The World Commission on Environment and Development (1987) defines sustainability as 'meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs'. Others have defined sustainability as use of resources in such a way that all aspects of life can be catered for. This incorporates the cultural, social and economic aspects. Overly, sustainability is the link between human beings and their environment. Human beings need the environment to satisfy their needs while the environment should be nurtured by human beings to maintain its balance. Transportation can be considered sustainable if the mode used does not produce extensive harm to the environment. Crane, R & Schweitzer, L. (2003) ascertain that this concept of 'greener travels has been introduced in modern urbanism. Sustainable transport is a notion that has arisen from new urbanism. There are numerous strategies that can be adopted by stakeholders to achieve this; the first being less use of auto transport. This could be any mode of transport that emits harmful waste to the environment. The easiest way to achieve this is through walks instead of cars. If it is very necessary to take auto trips, then automobiles used should adopt technologies that have less effect on the environment. All these features shall be examined in detail below. Immediate remedies for sustainable transport One can ensure that they keep their vehicles properly maintained. It is a common scenario to see heavy soot coming out of exhaust pipes of some vehicles while others do not have such emissions. The reason for the former mentioned observation is because such cars have been improperly maintained and their car filters are at fault. If simple adjustments like that can be made, then less carbon imprints will be left and transportation can be considered sustainable. Individuals should also purchase and use vehicles that require less fuel. There are car models that take up too much fuel despite the amount of distances travelled. In line with this, there are also other models that require a high minimum amount of fuel for them to start moving. Such cars should be avoided in the bid to make transport sustainable. Most four wheel drives and large vehicles fall under this category. Consumers should try to purchase vehicles that are electric hybrids. These types of vehicles have been known to reduce fuel use by about half the amount use by other types of vehicles. Drivers should also adjust the kind of routes used in their daily travels. This means that people should master all the routes leading to a certain destination and choose the most cost effective or the shortest one. This adjustment can be made by careful planning on the drivers' part. Drivers should also avoid routes that are characterised by heavy traffic jams. If these are the only routes available, then users can try passing through the place earlier or later than usual to minimise on fuel wastage. Air conditioning in vehicles is another heavy fuel user. Zero Waste New Zealand Trust (2006) establishes that one can be economise about ten percent of fuel usage if they do not use air conditioning. A simple but cleaner way of achieving the same result would be pulling down the windows on one's automobile. Another economical way of travelling is by avoiding personal cars. If almost every individual in the country uses a personal car, then more fuel is consumed and the country will have a large output of carbon emissions. Alternatives to the use of personal cars include: Use of public transport Walking Biking Using school buses rather than personally driving the children to school. Walking is one of the most efficient means of saving fuel because studies have shown that all other modes of transport aren't. Taking the example of a vehicle that uses petrol or diesel. Three quarters of the fuel is lost as heat, about nineteen percent is used to rise above inertia of the car material used and only one percent is used to move the car! This goes to show that walking is much more energy efficient than vehicle use. However, it is important to note that the above mentioned recommendations can only be implemented if there are systems that support these changes. For example, biking is favourable if there are large sidewalks designated. Public transport is efficient only if it is highly available and cheap. If an individual realises that there are no flexible operating hours for public transport, then it is their responsibility to plan ahead in order cope up with the arrangement. Drivers should try turning off their engines while waiting in traffic. Research from Transport Canada (2007) shows that; '10 seconds of idling uses more fuel than if you stop and restart the car' besides this, drivers should avoid going too fast as fast speeds use up too much fuel. Short term objectives Travellers should try and take up flexible working hours if these are offered in their work places. The reason for this is that most fuel in the vehicle is wasted during rush hours and thee are the moments when the highest amount of fuel is used hence increasing discharges to the atmosphere. Drivers and other vehicle users should also consider working within the harmless environment of their homes. Advancements in technology have made this kind of arrangement possible and it means that those who are conscious about fuel use and hence their carbon imprint on earth should take incorporate such arrangements in their lifestyles. Another short term change could be sharing vehicles among friends or neighbours; what is sometimes called 'carpooling'. This kind of arrangement can be done once, twice on a daily basis to minimise fuel use. Parties that have agreed to the arrangement can be rotating vehicles i.e. if today neighbour 'A' drove the rest of the colleagues to work, then tomorrow neighbour 'B' can do the same. This creates equitability and ensues that one driver does not feel overburdened. This is an enjoyable yet effective way of saving fuel especially hen public transport is not a viable option for concerned parties. Families should also plan their car use when travelling. If there are two types of vehicles within a household and the family under consideration is large one, then the smaller car should be used for shorter distances and for cases when there are few passengers. These large families should make frequent use of the large car especially when travelling long distances or when many members of the family are leaving the house at the same time. This will ensure that they fully utilise the large vehicle and minimise their fuel consumption as compared to cases when every member of the family waits for their turn to use the small car. (University of Canterbury, 2007) Consumers using delivery systems should also be conscious about the transport arrangement used. Selectivity should be enforced when choosing a particular commodity. One should consider whether the courier system they use is efficient and what mode of transport is being used. These days, there are courier systems that use rail which a preferable alternative. One can deduce the kind of transport used from delivery charges or they can simply inquire before purchasing the item. Such choices can ensure that consumers affect fuel usage in other aspects of their lives and not just what they use directly. Mid and long term changes Travellers should try minimising holidays made to overseas destinations. They should try visiting some tourist locations within their own country or choose countries that are not very far from their own countries. Additionally, travellers could strike a balance between travels made overseas and those ones within their own country to minimise fuel use and reduce carbon based emissions. Zero Waste New Zealand Trust (2006) institute that air travel is not conducive for fuel economy. Research has shown that using means of transport found on land and sea reduces fuel consumption by 300% as compared to using air travel. It is also important to not that air travel leaves these carbon emissions in parts of the environment where it is most harmful. This is because at that point of the atmosphere, the emissions affect the ozone layer hence causing a number of detrimental effects to the environment like global warming. Investigations by Sustainable Stuff (2007) have also shown that emissions at heights close to forty thousand feet (applicable to air travel) causes 270% increase in global warming as compared to carbon emissions occurring on ground level. For every tonne of aviation fuel used, about three and a half tonnes of carbon dioxide is emitted to the atmosphere. This would be equated to emitting approximately ten tonnes of carbon dioxide at ground level. Travellers should also question their current area of residence. It might be observed that some people live very far away from work and have to spend most of their time on the road thus taking up a lot of fuel. It is therefore necessary to change one's residential area to suite there area of work. Most often that not, it is common to find people who insist on staying in a particular neighbourhood just because they have been there for along time. It is necessary to make adjustments depending on options presented to someone in the case of their career. There are also schemes that have been put in place that allow travellers to offset the amount of carbon they have utilised while travelling. These schemes work by receiving donations from traveller's equivalent to the amount of carbon utilised while they were taking a trip. These donations are used to plant trees thus ensuring that those who have used up a large amount of fuel will compensate for it by adding o the number of trees in their environment. It should however be noted that this scheme takes a very long time to take effect. Trees planted today may require thirty years or so before they can start taking up large amounts of carbon dioxide. Despite that, this is a scheme for future generations and if the system is adopted world wide, then all members can reduce their carbon foot print on this earth and make it easier for future generations to do the same. (Sustainable Stuff, 2007) When discussing sustainable transport, a large contributor to the amount of fuel consumed transportation of products across the world. Countries should try importing goods from countries that do not use air travel for transportation of export goods. This is because that mode of transport coupled with those longer distances use up too much fuel. Some of the products that take up a large amount of fuel include off season fruits, computer parts and vehicles. It would make more 'carbon' sense to choose countries that use sea travel instead of air travel. In the business world, there are many competitors in the market, one of the criterion used to eliminate some choices offered could be through type of shipping means used. With recent advancement in fuels, there is talk of 'green fuels'. One such example is bio diesel. Green fuels have an advantage in that they reduce a minimal amount of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Green Stuff (2007) has stated that bio diesel reduces the amount of carbon emissions in the atmosphere by about twenty percent. Besides this, the fuel is quite energy efficient as a large portion of the fuel goes towards actually moving the vehicle. Perhaps the most important long term measure that can be implemented in the journey towards sustainable transport is through infrastructural changes from the government and other stakeholders in the transport industry. This means that there should be systems put in place that can facilitate sustainable transport. For example, some people in cities spend most of their time travelling to recreational areas. The amount of fuel used for such trips could be greatly reduced if governing bodies brought such recreational activities closer to residential areas. This also applies to shopping malls and other types of markets. This will reduce the amount of time people spend while travelling to these destinations and it will also encourage them to walk rather than use other mean of transport. Governing bodies should also ensure that they streamline the public transport sector. This is especially in relation to availability or convenience and cost of the services offered. More buses should be introduces especially double Decker buses as they take up more passengers and thus economise more fuel. Train services should also be improved by increasing the number of destinations and also increasing number of trips. What's more, side walks should be expanded to accommodate more pedestrians and bikers. Al these changes need to be incorporate into the budget of the country. Conclusion The idea behind sustainable development is to reduce one's use of energy in the world. The largest source of harmful discharges in the world is fossil fuel. This is due to the fact that these are the number one sources of carbon dioxide and other discharges. Emissions can be reduced using less transport, planning how one travels, use of public transport and by use of services and goods that emit less carbon products in the atmosphere. That is the recipe for sustainability in transportation. (University of Canterbury, 2007) Reference World Commission on Environment and Development (1987): Brundtland Report; Oxford University Press Crane, R & Schweitzer, L. (2003): Transport and Sustainability; The Role of the built environment; Alexandrine Press Zero Waste New Zealand Trust (2006): Sustainability and Waste - Out and about: Travel and Transport; retrieved from http://www.zerowaste.co.nz/index.sm accessed on 5th January 2008 Sustainable Stuff (2007): Transport/Travel; retrieved from http://www.sustainablestuff.co.uk/Biodiesel.html accessed on 5th January 2008 Transport Canada (2007): Tips for travellers; retrieved from http://www.tc.gc.ca/en/notices.htm#updated accessed on 5th January 2008 University of Canterbury (2007): What is sustainability ; retrieved from http://www.sustain.canterbury.ac.nz/ accessed on 5th January 2008 Read More