There are 7 ways of improving our lives in cities (2).
Last time I spoke about Vegetation; today is the second instalment. This time I’m going to focus on Transport.
To start, need to look at cars and acknowledge why they are so prevalent in our world. Recently Deutsche Bahn offered a super discounted rail ticket. This meant that people used the trains, but the reduction in car usage did not have any proportionality to the uptake in public transport. In fact; the minor dip in rural driving matched the dip in rural train trips - because people weren’t travelling at the end of June as much as they did for scheduled holidays in July! People will not readily change their day-to-day travel habits if they are more convenient than the alternatives.
The problem is that a combustion engine is at most 20% efficient. That means most of the energy from petrol goes into warming the surrounding environment (for those of you very interested in this, please look at my short blog post (https://sustainabilty.space/blog/burning-petrol-is-very-inefficient). This heat then results in maintaining and growing the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect, exacerbating issues that were discussed last week. The solution to this is both technological and societal. The reality is that even in a hotter world, people still need to commute; it is intrinsic to well-being. The following are a few picks of mine from the list of suggestions from the report published by Cooling Singapore.
The first step is simple. Paint cars, trains, and buses either white or silver. Air conditioning in a car is up to 22% of the total fuel usage. A lighter-coloured vehicle will reduce CO2 emissions by ~2% and 0.67% for hydrocarbons.
As we keep seeing and hearing; electric and hydrogen power vehicles are now inevitable. The first long-distance, timetabled, hydrogen-power train is no longer just a dream. Private electric cars are only limited now by the supporting infrastructure - not by consumer desire. The focus should therefore be on improving supply or barriers to supply rather than trying to raise demand. As it turns out, the price point for EV uptake is already met, the barriers are mainly on the supply side.
I am biased, but only because I’m right. Public transport is the most efficient way of moving people. Public Transport is getting more attractive across the board. However, we need to focus on improving the worst parts of the trip rather than improving what is already great. Metro-style services work because the commuter does not need to exert any mental effort; they can turn up and go right into the heart of the CBD. The station on either end is immaculate, well signed, and at a pleasant noise and light level. Buses must be faster than their car alternative - this means bus lanes and priority signalling.
Finally, there are infrastructure solutions to transport system problems. Alternative road surfacing is worth considering when fixing old assets. Low albedo (measure of the diffuse reflection of solar radiation out of the total solar radiation) materials are preferred in warmer climates - so why are all our roads black? Lighter surfaces will result in a significant reduction of the UHI effect. Portland cement concrete overlay could be used to resurface roads. This was cutting edge in the 1980s. Additionally, a study conducted in 1997 found that heavy vehicles consume up to 20% less fuel when travelling on concrete surfaces.
The purpose of this post, as with last week, is to highlight that the issues we face, are not unique problems. These have been rigorously considered and even in some cases solved either 50 years ago or in a different location. Next week I will talk about Energy.
