With reference to either waste management in urban areas or transport management in urban areas, discuss the extent to which sustainability can be achieved. (40 MARKS)

Transport management;

PLAN:
Speed bumps, traffic lights, round-a-bouts, speed limits, zebras crossings, speed cameras, speed awareness
Increase the prevalence of pedestrian areas (MK train station)- achieved by increasing the use of PUBLIC transport, park ‘n ride (Oxford), charge people for using cars= congestion charge in London
Introduce bus lanes
Boris bikes in London
Social, economic and environmental implications of all the strategies of controlling the transport.

DISCUSS: reasons for and against come to a conclusion at the end.
Sustainability means that any development made meets the needs of the contemporary inhabitants without compromising the needs of future generations. A sustainable city means that the city meets the needs of current and future inhabitants; this is relevant as the focus relates to urban areas. In relation to the management of transport there are many examples of how it can be controlled in order to provide a more sustainable approach to an urban area.

The most common strategy of managing transport is by introducing government regulated schemes such as congestion charges and transport schemes e.g. ‘Boris bikes’ which are both in used in London, with bike schemes becoming more popular as a result of the introduction in London in 2010 has inspired the implication of similar schemes in other areas, with a grand total of 600 cities in 49 different countries using them. The scheme allows people to hire a bike to cycle around the city to get where they need to with different station points of which you can access the bikes from spread across the city. The advantages of the scheme are that it has increased the physical activity and health of the capital reducing risks of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and many other health risks from physical inactivity. This leads onto another benefit of the scheme as the increased use of the bikes, decreases the use of other transport alternatives e.g. cars, buses thus decreasing levels of pollution emitted into the atmosphere. There is no need to book a bike making them readily available to all individuals Furthermore, the benefits of the cycle hire sustainability outweighs the risk of potential accidents and injuries that can be obtained from hiring the bikes. However, cyclists will have a prolonged time of exposure to pollution as they ride around the city. The bikes are also economically feasible costing only £2 to ride/ have access to for 24 hours, it’s even free if you only need to use it for only 30 minutes. In contrary if you fail to return or damage the bike you can incur a charge of £300 which may not be possible for all people especially with the current economic status. The disadvantages of the scheme are; higher amounts of younger than older adults use the bikes meaning that not everyone benefits from the scheme, if you are running late and the docking station doesn’t have any bikes available this can put the individual in a difficult position as they are limited with transport options.

In regards to the congestion charge it aims to deter people from driving thus yet again aiming to decrease pollution emissions. The charge is effective in reducing congestion, promotes more pedestrianised areas such as those in Milton Keynes; particularly at the train station which provides limited parking areas for cars, waiting areas only and a high prevalence of buses promoting the use of the public transport e.g. the bus or train. In addition the charge can increase revenue, meaning any money collected can be spent improving other areas of infrastructure, in a social perspective driving in city centres incurs significant external costs on the rest of society these including; congestion, pollution and accidents. With the cost of congestion at £20 billion per year, which led to the introduction of taxing petrol, however this wasn’t decided upon with the areas that congestion was worst. Finally the charge reduces journey time which is good for business and helpful for emergency services as they are able to get to emergencies quicker. The disadvantages encompass the loss of business within the centre of the city as people will be more encouraged to visit out of town shopping centres and lead to the decline of city centres. The collection of the charge is even higher than the petrol tax itself as it requires intelligent technology in classing drivers that pay and don’t (tax evasion). Furthermore, there has been an increased number of people using fake plates to avoid being fined and the tax can be seen as “regressive” as it takes a higher percentage of income tax from the poorer social class, of whom can’t afford it.

Many other cities/ towns use simpler methods of managing transport e.g. bus lanes which can cause individuals to be fined if they use the lanes further promoting the use of public transport as the routes are more straightforward, efficient and proficient. In Milton Keynes the grid system, round-a-bouts and speed bumps are used to manage traffic and congestion in the area. The advantages of these methods are; they provide a means for a more controlled flow of traffic as they are divided at intervals, if you take a wrong turn, you can easily return to the way you came due to the high presence of round-a-bouts and the simple grid system. However, these methods are effective to a point they do not prevent people from using their cars as the congestion charge and bike scheme does for the people of London, therefore; pollution levels are still present although not as much as that in London as the population of MK isn’t as large.

In conclusion, with the observations made it is evident that there are ways and means of proving sustainable alternatives within a city in regards to transport. As they have been seen to reduce pollution emissions on an environmental scale, introduce a means for a healthier population on a social scale as well as provide monetary availability to improve the infrastructure of a city if needs be for the economical aspect. However, it’s also shown that not all people benefit/ heed to the schemes as many people still drive their cars committing tax evasion to avoid the charges and fines. It therefore can’t be fully determined/ stated that alternative uses of transport can provide a more sustainable outcome.