Given the atmospheric pollution that we find in large cities that promote respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, a necessary movement arises known as sustainable mobility. It is one of the guidelines for the planned sustainable development of a territory. And today it is difficult to imagine a city without motorized vehicles circulating in it. It is one more element of any urban landscape. However, sustainable mobility aims to achieve a more sustainable form of displacement with the environment and more respectful of people's health.
In this article we are going to tell you what sustainable mobility is and how important it is.
Air pollution problem
Although seeing cars, buses, motorcycles, in vans, and other vehicles in any urban landscape is common, this has a high environmental cost. Both at the environmental level and at the health level, air pollution generates great problems. Therefore, it is necessary to establish measures to reduce carbon dioxide gases and nitrogen oxides that are the cause of these diseases.
Greenhouse gas emissions from motorized vehicles come from burning fossil fuels. Year after year the emissions of these polluting gases caused by transport increase and it is something more worrying in cities. The largest cities are those with the highest rate of air pollution. This is beginning to be seen as a public health issue.
City councils and institutions are committed to promoting the sustainable mobility of people and goods using environmentally friendly energy efficient means of transport. Thus, We not only managed to reduce the emissions of polluting gases, but also a lower consumption of fossil fuels.
What is sustainable mobility
Sustainable mobility is a movement that provides benefits beyond those for the environment. It promotes a more efficient type of transport since we use energies with less pollution and seek the economic, social and transit well-being of all the inhabitants of the city. The urban centers that have a lower pollution index are those that have sustainable mobility.
The main objective of the sustainable movement is to look for urban centers that have less pollution indices, a higher road safety index and a place where the bicycles and pedestrians can travel without complications. This healthy environment can promote mobility based on the reduction of pollution and the use of quality public transport. All these spaces provide a good quality of life for citizens.
Sustainable mobility adds responsibility to companies, citizens and administrations. They have the duty to promote the use of alternative fuels and vehicles, as well as energy savings and efficiency in the transport sector. We citizens have the responsibility of having to add healthy habits to daily commuting.
Sustainable mobility habits
In order to apply sustainable mobility in a city, citizens must incorporate more sustainable habits in our day-to-day life. They are small gestures that can help create great benefits for both health and the environment. Some of the habits that we can incorporate to promote sustainable mobility are the following:
- Public transportation: use public transport before private whenever possible. If we make a comparison, public transport takes up 50 times less space and emits 70% less carbon dioxide than a private vehicle. In addition, it helps to greatly reduce daily traffic jams. Let's not forget that traffic jams increase air pollution since vehicles are in the same place for longer.
- Use the private vehicle less: For short or medium trips we can use bicycles or electric vehicles. We know that the current occupancy rate for a common vehicle is between 1 and 3 people, which is why it has been established as the least efficient and most polluting mode of transport. To go to nearby places, it is best to walk or cycle.
- Car sharing: Yes we must use private transport to go to work one to another more distant place, we can share the car with close people. Collective means of transport and shared car systems such as the Bla Bla Car can be used to increase the number of people transporting the same vehicle. In this way, we manage to be more efficient and sustainable in our trips.
Given that sustainable flight is a matter of special relevance in Spanish cities, various urban plans for sustainable mobility have been drawn up to help this issue from a local and environmental perspective.
Sustainable mobility plans
The sustainable mobility plans that cities are working on aim at the following points:
- Ensure and promote that pedestrians continue to be the protagonists in cities. We cannot allow motorized vehicles to have more prominence than ordinary citizens.
- They try consolidate and promote the expansion of the use of bicycles as a general and daily means of transport. The bicycle does not have any greenhouse gas emissions. Its use is quite interesting.
- Establish a higher participation share in public transport of urban displacements. Use the train, metro or bus more frequently.
- Redefine a daily hierarchy in which the city can better order the flow of traffic.
- Favor the reduction of atmospheric pollution caused by transport.
- Improve road safety and the coexistence of all users.
- Get a city that will be accessible to all types of citizens.
Although these goals can be achieved, there are many challenges to be faced. One of them is that citizens continue to prefer the private vehicle rather than travel by public transport. This is a matter of independence and speed or comfort. Although in recent years the increase in fuel prices has caused fewer trips, greenhouse gas emissions through road transport have grown by 71% since 1991.
I hope that with this information you can learn more about sustainable mobility.