Use of Public Transportation - Essay Example

Persuasive Speech on using Public Transportation Student’s Name: Instructor’s Name: Course Title: Date: Outline of the Presentation Use of Public Transportation Thesis: Within the commuter system, we can have two extremes which are either public transit or private car. The two approaches have their unique advantages and disadvantages. Literatures shows that public transit has numerous comparative advantages such opportunity for mass movement, low cost on ridership, ecological benefits and reduction of congestion among others which then should cajole individual to embrace the approach. I. Introduction a. Public Transport and when it started Thesis: Within the commuter system, we can have two extremes which are either public transit or private car. The two approaches have their unique advantages and disadvantages. Literatures shows that public transit has numerous comparative advantages such opportunity for mass movement, low cost on ridership, ecological benefits and reduction of congestion among others which then should cajole individual to embrace the approach. II. Background a. Intention and Purpose of Public Transit III. Argument for the benefit of Public Transportation a. The first most advantage of public transit is that it offers opportunity for movement of individuals in mass. b. Secondly, utilization of public transit saves individuals and households money. c. The third advantage of mass transit is the positive ripple effect it has on the economy. d. The fourth notable positive role of public transport as compared to private car is its role in reduction of congestion within the cities. e. The fifth aspect relates to safety of the two approaches in terms of deaths and accidents associated with transit system. f. The sixth advantage relates to environmental/ ecological benefits. IV. Argument of the problem with Public Transit a. The only comparative advantage that private car has over public transit system is the convenience associated with it V. Conclusion Thesis: Within the commuter system, we can have two extremes which are either public transit or private car. The two approaches have their unique advantages and disadvantages. Literatures shows that public transit has numerous comparative advantages such opportunity for mass movements, low cost on ridership, ecological benefits and reduction of congestion among others which then should cajole individual to embrace the approach. The aim of the speech was to persuade the audience on the positive connotations of using mass public transit as opposed to private car. Introduction Transport systems exist to serve human beings mobility needs so that they can engage in exchange of goods and services/ economic purposes, reach various destinations for social purposes and reach employment centers. In a nutshell, the transport system is critical in ensuring livability, modernization & competitiveness of a given region or a city by creating linkages (Keeling, 1995, p.116). Within the commuter system, we can have two extremes which are either public transit or private car. My audience, indeed the two approaches have their advantages and disadvantages subject to various factors such as distance and urban design and land use policies. Nevertheless, from a generic perspective, it has been proved that public transit has numerous advantages based cost benefit analysis, social analysis, environmental impact analysis and other parameters such as speed, comfort and safety (Beirão & Sarsfield Cabral, 2007). While there has been positive proof on public transit, in developed nation, private car still dominates travel (Linda, 2003, p.27; Pucher & Renne, 2003, p.49). My dear listeners, the aim of my presentation is to persuade you on the need for using public transportation by outlining for you the various benefits associated with the same. The first most advantage of public transit is that it offers opportunity for movement of individuals in mass. Ladies and gentlemen, imagine those who do not have capability of owning a car? How would they move from one point to another with ease and convenience? Public transit has provided them with opportunity to move from one point to the other at a subsidized cost (Litman, 2011, p.2). For instance, in America, in 2012 Americans took 10.5 billion trips on public transportation (American Public Transportation Association, 2013). This means that public transit offers personal opportunities to individuals by enabling them move from one point to another for economic or social purposes (Banister & Berechman, 2001, p.210). Secondly, utilization of public transit saves individuals and households money. The public transit emerges as the cheaper option owing to the cost sharing mechanism that is distributed to the large number of individuals moved per trip as compared to private car where individuals bare the cost alone (Litman, 2011, p.2). American Public Transportation Association (2013) observes that utilization of public transport reduce household and individual expenditure since those individuals who own private car for transit purposes spends 16% of every dollar on transportation with the majority at 94% going to buying, maintaining and operating cars. This constitutes the second largest expenditure after housing. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (2013) on the other hand indicates that public transport users can save an average amount of up to $764 on monthly basis if worked from a premise of an average national gas price of $2.628 and monthly unreserved parking space at accost of $ 154.23. The third advantage of mass transit is the positive ripple effect it has on the economy. Public transits system is a major employer of individuals either directly or indirectly. These include the drivers, mechanics and those working in assembly plants among others. Additionally, it a major public investment that contributes to larger economic good as compared to private car. This is opposed to private car where in most scenarios the owner is the driver. Thus when one boards a public transit system, he or she contributes to the employment of others. For instance, American Public Transportation Association (2013) notes that 1 dollar invested in public transportation, $4 is generated as a return on the investment. They equally note that for every $1 billion invested in public transportation, 36, 000 job opportunities are created. Moreover, the ripple effect is felt in increased sales where for every $10 million in capital investment in public transit contributes to $30 million in increased business sales. The fourth notable positive role of public transport as compared to private car is its role in reduction of congestion within the cities. Dear listeners, imagine a scenario in a given country or city where every household own a car for private transport purposes? This would mean vast land for roads, vast land for car parks and this is what public transit has saved us from. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (2013) observes that 30, 000 passengers can be carried on a single U.S subway line in one hour, but if those commuters chose to ride individually 10 additional highways would have been required. Such massive ridership is critical in reducing congestion associated with private cars which flood the roads yet they move only a few individuals while affording masses the opportunity to move. Indeed, these congestions have economic cost. For instance Linda (2003, p.27) notes that congestion in European cities lead to loss of 100 billion Euro loss annually. Hence, public transit has helped reduce congestion and save the economic losses associated with traffic snarl up within the cities. The fifth aspect relates to safety of the two approaches in terms of deaths and accidents associated with transit system. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (2013) indicates that in America, transit in public transit accounts for 200, 000 fewer accidents, deaths and injuries as compared to private car on a similar trip. Moreover, Litman (2011, p.2) observes that safety of individuals in enhanced as issues of carjacking are minimal in public transit as compared to private car ridership. The same is affirmed by National Safety Council cited in Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (2013) who posits that it is 170 times safer to ride in a public bus as compared to private means. The sixth advantage relates to environmental/ ecological benefits. Linda (2003, p.27) notes that car use has elicited various environmental issues such as air pollution, noise pollution and soil pollution. The outstanding feature in within environmental context is the oil consumption and emission comparative difference between mass transit and private car ridership. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (2013) observes that car use contributes 50% of air pollution. On the other hand, it notes that utilization of mass transit helps avoid emission of 126 million pounds of hydrocarbons. American Public Transportation Association (2013) corroborates the findings by stating that mass transit reduces the nation’s carbon emissions by 37 million metric tons annually and that if an individual switches to public commute, he or she reduces his or her household carbon emission by 10% or up to 30% if he or she eliminates the second car. Indeed such reduction is critically in reducing carbon which constitutes one of the harmful greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Thus, this goes a long way in reducing global warming and climate change. The only comparative advantage that private car has over public transit system is the convenience associated with it since one can drive up to the destination he or she is going for as compared to public system that is likely to leave passengers at a given terminal. The same applies when one is riding home where the ultimate stop is at his or her residence. Additionally one is able to schedule his or her transit as per her convenience without adhering to time schedules of the public (Linda, 2003). Nevertheless, this convenience has had a negative effect on individual’s physical fitness. The reason this argument is that it leads to excessive car use. This reduces physical fitness as one just drives from one point to the other while public transit offers an individual an opportunity to walk or cycle to the nearest terminal and thus engage in physical activity. Such inactivity associated with driving has led to increased rates of lifestyle diseases such as overweight and obesity. Conclusion The aim of the speech was to persuade the audience on the positive connotations of using mass public transit as opposed to private car. The paper established that while trends show that people tend to favor private car over mass transit, mass transit has numerous comparative advantage over private car. These include opportunity for movement for the masses who cannot afford private car, reduction in congestion, positive ripple effect on the economy such as employment, saving for individuals as mass transit is comparatively cheaper, enhanced safety as compared to private cars and lesser negative environmental impact on the environment. Hence, I would urge all my audience to embrace the use of public transit for larger and individual economic and environmental gain. References American Public Transportation Association (2013). Public transportation benefits. Retrieved on 25 December 2013 from: http://www.apta.com/MEDIACENTER/PTBENEFITS/Pages/default.aspx. Banister, D., & Berechman, Y. (2001). Transport investment and the promotion of economic growth. Journal of transport geography, 9(3), 209-218. Beirão, G., & Sarsfield Cabral, J. A. (2007). Understanding attitudes towards public transport and private car: A qualitative study. Transport Policy, 14(6), 478-489. Keeling, D. J. (1995). Transport and the world city paradigm. World cities in a world-system, 115-131. Linda, S. T. E. G. (2003). Can public transport compete with the private car?. IATSS RESEARCH, 27(2), 27. Litman, T. (2011). Evaluating public transit benefits and costs. Victoria Transport Policy Institute, 65. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (2013).benefits. retrieved on 25 December 2013 from: http://www.pacommutes.com/public-transit/benefits/. Pucher, J., & Renne, J. L. (2003). Socioeconomics of urban travel: evidence from the 2001 NHTS. Transportation Quarterly, 57(3), 49-77. Read More