Why public transport can’t reduce the carbon emissions of the world
Global warming, the recent Copenhagen summit, and the new initiative of Earth Hour all point to one fact- all of us are concerned about our environment and our planet Earth. Over the years, one of the most noticeable causes which have come to be linked with global warming is the rising number of vehicles.
Environmentalists keep griping about how the rising number of fuel guzzlers on the road are not only heating up the environment but also depleting the natural resources of oil. And as an immediate remedy to the problem, they point to wider use of the public transport system. The reason is obvious- wider use of public transport means lesser cars and motorbikes on road, which ultimately means lesser pollution.
But despite all the efforts by governments across the world, public transport hasn’t gone on to become a success in any of the nations so far. And it is unlikely it will, at least in the near future.
Consider this for an explanation. Let’s assume that the price of petrol is Rs 50 per litre (I am an Indian and I prefer doing calculations in Indian currency) and consider that I have a motorbike which gives a mileage of around 50 km per litre. And for the sake of easier calculations, my office is 50 km away and it takes me an hour to reach there by bike.
Now, the tangible cost for the commute is Rs 50. If we measure the time cost involved, I have a salary of approximately Rs 138 per hour. So, a commute by bike cost me Rs 138 worth of time and work.
Compare this with using a public transport, let’s say a bus. The fare for a bus journey of 50 km is Rs 25. That’s the tangible cost of the journey, which is almost half that of the previous scenario. But let’s calculate the time cost. It will take any average person 5-10 minutes to reach the bus stand. After reaching the stands, there’s usually a waiting time involved of 10-15 minutes, since even the GPRS systems can’t tell the exact arrival time of the bus.
And since the bus will be stopping at various bus stands along the way, the effective travel time is anywhere between one and a half hour to two hours. So, the total time for travelling from one’s home to office via public transport is between one hour and forty minutes to two hours and twenty minutes. And that’s a time cost of more than Rs 207. That’s way more than a bike commute.
There is of course the added hassle of loss of privacy and overcrowded transport systems in most cities. So, why would a commuter take the public transport if he can afford his own vehicle?
A better way to tackle the pollution menace of transport is to build greener vehicles. E-bikes are definitely a good mode of transport and are slowly catching on. E-bikes are already popular in Asia and the West is slowly realizing the benefits of it. In addition to that, governments should spend more on finding alternative sources of energy which are green and are good for the environment.
Green is the best way to go forward which will put an end to all the worries. For the moment, e-bikes are one of the few commercial solutions available, but we are sure that in the near future, a lot more will come to the fore.
Harish Mehta is the vice-president of VRLA Manufacturing, a company that manufactures e-zipp. E-zipp is an electric bike which runs on batteries and thus helps cut costs and fight global warming. To know more about e-zipp and electric bikes, click here.
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