Atin Ito First Filipino Community Newspaper in Ontario
The indispensable role of transport in today’s society is stated in the first line of a United Nations paper on the declaration of November 26 as World Sustainable Transport Day. “Transport is vital for promoting connectivity, trade, economic growth and employment.”
But it “is also implicated as a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. Resolving these trade-offs is essential to achieving sustainable transport and, through that, sustainable development,” the UN paper said.
The UN Secretary General’s High-Level Advisory Group defines sustainable transport as “the provision of services and infrastructure for the mobility of people and goods – advancing economic and social development to benefit today’s and future generations – in a manner that is safe, affordable, accessible, efficient and resilient, while minimizing carbon and other emissions and environmental impacts.”
Today is the first time this observation is being held, and stakeholders have been asked to mark the day with education activities and events designed to enhance the public’s knowledge of sustainable transport issues.
It gives every citizen the opportunity to think about how crucial transport, road transport in particular, is in every aspect of our daily lives. Mobility is central to any development. Transport systems are part of the solution to economic, community, national, and global issues.
Every citizen can contribute to sustainable transport. It starts with informed lifestyle choices on mobility – how to get from one place to another can have a large impact on carbon emissions.
Will you drive, or take public transportation? If you drive, will you take a four-wheel vehicle, a two-wheel motorcycle or a bicycle? Or will you take public transportation? Or walk?
Making informed choices on mobility can help reduce carbon emissions and improve air quality. We do not need to be reminded about air pollution and its effects on physical and mental health, also on productivity and efficiency. In Metro Manila and many urban centers around the country where vehicle traffic has become part of the landscape, air pollution has become an accepted fact of life.
But making a choice on one’s mode of transportation is not easy; it comes with other problems, one of them the safety of the individual. Choosing to take public transport, especially if one has the choice to leave a private car behind, comes with much inconvenience. Our public transport system within the metro operates without a schedule, and overcrowding is the standard situation especially during rush hours.
Choosing a bike or to walk to one’s destination presents a more prominent safety issue. Bikers share the congested roads with four-wheel motor vehicles which swerve into bike lanes often. For those who walk, many sidewalks are occupied by vendors and the vehicle engines’ emissions expose the pedestrian to lung disease.
Clearly, the development of sustainable transport needs a whole-of-society effort and a stronger political will to implement laws and local ordinances.
But the bigger picture of World Sustainable Transport Day is to get all sectors to recognize the importance of transport connectivity through an integrated intermodal transport system. The UN cites the importance of cooperation to “develop reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, exchanging best practices to optimize the development of interconnected highways, roads, streets, railways, waterways, airways, areas of modal transfer and ports.”
Today, this week, for as long as we can, let us make informed choices that can contribute to reducing carbon emissions, and find ways to push for government attention to make the way of our choices efficient and safe.
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Credit belongs to: www.mb.com.ph
