Mitigation of Environmental Impacts of Transportation Transportation A well–organize well–organized d transportatio transportation n system is essential essential for economic development development and it offers a wide range of benefits benefits such such as accessibility accessibility to goods and services. services. However However it is obvio obvious us that that it also also caus causes es serio serious us proble problems ms in the the form form of nega negati tive ve impa impact cts s on enviro environm nment ent.. Moto Motorr vehic vehicle les s and and other other modes modes of tran transp spor orta tatio tion n are are signif signific ican antt contributors to air and water pollution not only on a local level as well as regional and global levels. In addition transportation is a ma!or source of noise and gives rise to other environmental problems such as water pollution and fragmentation of land. "hen we say mitigation it means the elimination or reduction of the fre#uency magnitude or severity of e$posure to ris%s or minimization of the potential impact of a threat or warning. warning. Mitigation of environmental impacts of transportation has the ob!ective of reducing the environmental impact of transportation system and ma%ing this sector more sustainable. sustainable. Mitigation Mitigation of environmenta environmentall impacts aims to ma%e ma%e decisions that that are based on understanding of environmental conse#uences ad ta%e actions that protect restore and enhance the environment. The following are approaches for mitigation of environmental impacts in its correct order&se#uence' (. Mitigat Mitigation ion by avoidan avoidance ce – this approac approach h represe represents nts cheapes cheapestt and most effect effective ive form form of impa impact ct miti mitiga gatio tion. n. It meas measur ures es cons conside iderin ring g siting siting desig design n proce process ss technology route alternatives and )no go* options to avoid impacts. +. Mitigat Mitigation ion b reduction reduction – this approac approach h aims aims at limitin limiting g the severity severity of impacts impacts and not avoiding them altogether. ,. Mitiga Mitigati tion on by reme remedy dy – meas measure ures s under underta ta%e %en n to restor restore e the the envir environ onme ment nt to its its previous condition or to a new e#uilibrium. -. omp ompen ensa sati tion on – this this appro approac ach h open opens s a windo window w of oppo opport rtun unit ity y for for nego negotia tiatio tions ns between developers and decision/ma%ers. 0. Enhancement Enhancement – applied applied in parallel parallel with other other compensa compensation tion measures measures to encour encourage age oppo opport rtuni uniti ties es to limit limit the scop scope e and and scal scale e of impac impacts ts and and on impr improv oving ing the the environmental features. 1eferences' http'&&www.twoeam/eu.net&handboo%&20.pdf http'&&environment.fhwa.dot.gov&pro!dev&tdmmitig+.asp http'&&www.lumes.lu.se&database&alumni&2,.2-&theses&anderson3!it%a.pdf
4roblems and Issues on 4hilippine Transportation 5ystem According to a blogger http'&&getrealphilippines.com the following are the fundamental roadbloc%s to improving 4hilippine public transport' (. 6elegation of mass transit capability to private enterprise /
It is considered as the most fundamental problem with the way public transport is being managed in the 4hilippines. 7uses and !eepneys which are the basic mode of transportation wor% under the )boundary* system. 8ehicles are leased to drivers who agree to pay a fi$ed minimum daily fee to the lessor. 9ther than this the government do not have regulations on the number of operators authorized to ply on the routes. And even that is sub!ect to abuse and mismanagement as it seems many of these routes have been over/subscribed way beyond their capacities to accommodate transport sectors.
+. Aversion to wal%ing /
6ue to the tropical climate :ilipinos does not prefer to wal% which gives an avenue to tricycles and pedicabs to have a mar%et on transportation thus adding to the congestion. Add to this is the unfriendly streets open sewers vendors etc.
,. 5tunted ethnic wor% schedules /
:ilipinos want their transport service serving them door – to – door any minute of the day. However not everyone could afford t ta%e ta$i cabs so
they rely on cheaper transport. A scheduled limited/route mass transport service will be unable to compete with personalize and e$tremely fle$ible service available.
9n the other hand the Asian 6evelopment 7an% addresses three core issues within the t transport sector' •
Enhancement of transport efficiency
•
6evelopment of urban transport
•
5ustainability of the transport system in terms of the physical sustainability of assets the social sustainability of operations in relation to safety and security and its environmental sustainability.
To address the three core issues the strategy supports four %ey areas of intervention' •
Improvement of national highways
•
6evelopment of urban transport
•
5trengthening of sector governance
•
:acilitation of private sector infrastructure development and regional operations.
1eferences' http'&&www.adb.org&documents&philippines/transport/sector/assessment/strategy/and/ road/map http'&&getrealphilippines.com&blog&+2((&2-&three/fundamental/roadbloc%s/to/improving/ philippine/public/transport&
;eading ountries in Terms of Transportation 5ystem (2. 6enmar% 6enmar% has a well/developed and generally environmentally friendly transport system. The transport system has been improved in several areas including public transport integration of the different modes of transport and new technologies li%e electric vehicles and modular vehicle combinations. In 6enmar% many individuals rely on the bi%e as their primary means of transportation. Initiatives that improve the facilities for
cyclists are therefore of priority. They have an urban bi%e program that allows people to use a #uarter to unloc% a par%ed bi%e then go for a ride and par% it in another zone across town. The openhagen Metro which is the main transit system of 6enmar% is lin%ed by anther train system that connects people to the suburbs and outside regions of 6enmar%. The trains use an Automated Train 5ystem
overnment wants to invest +&, of the funds for infrastructure in greener transport choices such as public transport light rails and the use of bi%es. ?. >ermany Although the >erman transportation networ% was heavily damaged during "orld "ar II the >erman transport system is now one of the best in Europe. In +22+ the railroad system consisted of --222 %m of operational trac% oth the greater part erated by the government/owned :ederal 1ailways 5ystem. >ermany had @+0 airports in +22( which includes :ran%furt International Airport that is %nown as one of the top ten airports. It is the airport with the largest number of international destiations served worldwide. The /7ahn is an underground networ% that covers (,+ %m of the city. This lin%s to the 5/7ahn the above ground train networ% that lin%s to other transportation routes throughout the city. B. Hong Cong Appro$imately ?2D of all travel in Hong Cong is done via the Mass Transit 1ailway networ% coverage for phones and computers. The Hong Cong Airport E$press is the high/speed train that will ta%e you from the HC Airport to entral 5tation. Hong Cong buses are double/dec%er !ust li%e 5ingapore and C. Hong Cong also has Tramways and 4ea% tram which carries both tourists and residents to the upper levels of Hong Cong. . nited 5tates of America Transportation in the nited 5tates is facilitated by road air rail and water networ%s. The vast ma!ority of passenger travel occurs by automobile for shorter distances and airplane or railroad for some people for longer distances. In descending order most cargoes travel by railroad truc% pipeline or boatF air shipping is typically used only for perishables and premium e$press shipments. The Gew or% 5ubway system offers ,0 %m of coverage across the city e$press services that run on separate trac%s from local trains and it runs +-/hour a day every day of the year. The nited 5tates also has advanced air transportation infrastructure. The Atlanta International Airport is the worlds busiest in terms of passengers and the Memphis International Airport is the worlds busiest in terms of cargo. @.
:rance
The :rench transportation system is one of the best in "estern Europe. It has developed Europes fastest passenger train the high/speed J >rande 8itesse which began to operate in (?B(. In (??- the English hannel Tunnel or )hunnel* was completed and it established the first direct rail lin% between :rance and >reat 7ritain. The 1E1 (1Kseau E$press 1Kgional= is a rapid transit system in :rance. 1E1 acts as an underground or subway train within 4aris. 5hippers also use the internal waterways of the country particularly for low/cost bul%y and heavy goods. The ton/miles carried by canal and river barges amount to +2D of the total for rail freight. The three principal waterways deep enough to accommodate the (022/ton barges common in Europe are the 1hine 1iver the 5eine between ;e Havre and 4aris and the canalized section of the Moselle 1iver below Metz. Although the :rench are avid motorists :rance was slow to build modern
superhighways. This was because the relatively thinly populated country had a good e$isting networ% of older main roads. In (?@ :rance had fewer superhighways
about the same size as ItalyLs and half the size of 7ritainLs. In tonnage handled including oil grain and other bul% cargoes Marseille is the worldLs eighth/largest port and ;e Havre the (,th largest. 0. 5outh Corea 5outh Coreas railroad networ% lin%s the entire country. The first railroad lin%ing 5eoul and Incheon opened 5eptember (B??. The Corean "ar badly damaged the railroad networ% which the government rebuilt and improved. The high/speed railway %nown as Corea Train E$press
England
ommonly referred to as )The Tube* ;ondons underground networ% is the oldest in the world as well as the longest with -22%m of trac%. Its also one of the most travelled with over one billion passengers recorded in +22. ities in England generally have e$cellent public bus systems as well as underground rail services in the bigger cities. 4asses for these services are relatively cheap. There are also two %inds of ta$is in England' the blac% cabs which are metered and can be summoned in the street and minicabs which are cheaper and reserved by phone. ;ong-distance buses called coaches are usually the cheapest mode of long/distance transportation but can also be the slowest. Transportation by train is often faster and more comfortable but can cost a bit more. Train tic%ets can be purchased ahead of time
online
