Congestion in cities in relation to growing personal cars

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Congestion in cities
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Traffic congestion is the accumulation of vehicles on the road, which leads to slower speeds and
some time the cars stop completely, longer trip times than average time which sees the
passengers spend much time on the road and increases vehicle waiting as they queue to pass
(Ben-Dor, Ben-Elia & Benenson, 2018). Traffic congestion has been a problem affecting significant
cities globally, particularly all big cities. The main cause of traffic congestion is increased use of
private cars rather than public transport. Other causes include economic expansion, seen in many
developed and developing countries. As the economy grows, there is increased transportation of
goods and services, precipitating traffic congestion (Ben-Dor, Ben-Elia & Benenson, 2018).
Another cause is increased urbanization. In recent years, in developing and developed countries,
there has been increased urbanization where the urban centers are built and designed. The
increased urbanization causes transit of goods and raw materials for the industries in developed
urban areas, and by so doing, there is increased traffic congestion. Another fundamental cause is
the underinvestment in infrastructure. The infrastructure involves the roads. When the roads are
poor, there would be congestion as vehicles travel with difficulty while in transit hence leading
to traffic congestion. Congestion may also e caused by poor weather conditions, but this cause is
short-term according to how long the weather condition would last. Weather conditions like rain,
mist, and fog inroads limit the drivers' vision and force them to travel at slower speeds. Others
include physical barriers like roadblocks and road construction and repair, which causes the
vehicles to move at a slower pace and thus increases the vehicular time.
The main cause as stipulated earlier is the use of private vehicles rather than public transport.
There has been increased use of personal cars in modern countries due to improved technology,
and many people are unwilling to use public transport (Omonov, 2022). For instance, increased
technology and industrialization have produced many cars available in the market and can get
easily. These developments increase the number of vehicles on the roads, causing traffic
congestion. Some people are unwilling to use the public vehicle the transport from one place to
another, especially people with better jobs tend to choose the private car to get to work on time.

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It has also been documented that the increased use of private cars pollutes the air through smoke
and emissions, which pose a health hazard to the people in that area (Omonov, 2022). Also, the
vehicles in traffic jams produce a lot of sounds which leads to sound pollution.
When comparing private cars and public vehicles in terms of congestion, we may look at a
different perspective that personal cars have a small carrying capacity. In contrast, available
vehicles have a large carrying capacity. In terms of these carrying capacities, when the private
car owners opt to use the public in their transportation would be better as they would decrease
the number of vehicles on the road. At the same time, they are concentrated in large carrier
vehicles. The government must pose a strict ban on the city centers. Around these city centers,
we find a lot of diversions and directions, which will help if the number of vehicles on the road
are minimized, which would lessen the traffic jam. Those who consider the ban on private cars
from accessing the city centers believe that public transport is unsuitable and uncomfortable for
some people who may concurrently fail to reach work on time.
In addition, another traffic congestion is caused by other factors other than the private vehicles.
A study done by Agyapong and Ojo, 2018 at Accra in Ghana shows a different perspective on
vehicles cause traffic congestion, especially on market days while the people are congested.
Stipulates that the bad attitude of drivers may cause traffic congestion that is the drivers' reaction
and perception to certain rules. Traders and pedestrians may also cause traffic congestion,
especially in areas where the residents are trading or living. Poor road design was also stated to
cause traffic congestion designed like the single way roads support congestion than the dual
roads. The journal went on to stipulate the effects that congestion may bring to people are
decreased sales and productivity where the traders cannot deliver the produced products to the
market at the required time. Also, the raw materials may fail to reach in time, leading to
decreased sales and productivity. The decreased sales affect the person's psychology and lead to
stress and depression. After the review, the journal suggested some recommendations applied in
the transport industry to reduce traffic congestion. The proposals were public education on the
road and teaching to comply with public transport rather than private cars.

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Enforcement of strict road traffic regulations like banning packing alongside the road or in
unauthorized parking areas. They also recommended that there should be adequate parking areas
to avoid congestion inroads when vehicles park.
Another article stipulating an investigation done by Abdulrazzaq et al., 2020, shows a study done
in Malaysia that involved 384 public transport users in providing a modal shift model from
private car transport to public transport (Abdulrazzaq et al., 2020). It showed that the old people
would rather use their cars while commuting to avoid disturbances and feel comfortable in their
cars. It also showed that more young people would use public transport and private cars
depending on the reliability and schedule. While the time to go to school is limited, the people
would prefer personal cars to public transportation. In the recommendation, the journal
recommended that the use of public transport in commuting would reduce traffic congestion,
making vehicle easy and faster (Abdulrazzaq et al., 2020). Also, there is a reduction in noise and
air pollution. It also recommended that the shift rules and policies be embraced and implemented
to reduce traffic congestion.
Another article shows an investigation done in China by Zhang, Long & Chen, 2019, which
stipulates how car restriction policies can reduce road traffic congestion. The study was carried
out in six major Chinese cities where the road traffic congestion was a menace (Zhang, Long &
Chen, 2019). The article brought forward some suggestions, which were car restrictions policies
and were implemented to see their effectiveness. The car restriction policies targeted personal car
growth in terms of usage and also in terms of ownership. It also stipulated restrictions in terms of
license plate restriction, restricted car driving, and limited car purchase (Zhang, Long & Chen,
2019).
To start with usage, this involved many times one could use a private car rather than the
recommended public transport. In terms of ownership, it was limited to ensure that all the
citizens embraced the public transport. The restricted license plates confirmed that the licensing
and issuance of number plates was limited to private cars and usually licensed the public
transport vehicles with ease. Limited driving was also put in place, which ensured that the
driving licenses were limited and only ones with public transport approval would get the driving
licenses. In terms of car purchase, the restrictions were put in place, allowing the purchase of
public transport vehicles more than private cars. The results showed reduced road transport, and
the public transport passenger volume increased by 58% (Zhang, Long & Chen, 2019).

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The journal recommended that the policies worked but only in times of emergencies, and the
change was short-term; therefore, a more effective way was through the improvement of a plan
for urban roads where such diversions would be made to ease connection, also increasing the
public transport infrastructure through investing in the road transport and implementing much on
the road construction and maintenance and more purposely, growing public acceptance to the
public transport (Zhang, Long & Chen, 2019). The people need to be convinced of the
importance of embracing the public transport and accept voluntarily choosing public
transportation over the private vehicle.
The other group, which considers private cars not to cause congestion and that people should not
opt for public transport, considers traffic congestion caused by other main factors like poor
infrastructure, poor regulations, and policies regarding road safety (Oyoo, Wamalwa & Kihara,
2022). It recommends that good infrastructure like the construction of dual roads and flyovers
would ease congestion. Also, considers the willingness of the people to choose either private cars
or public transport to be respected. In addition, the road users should adhere strictly to the road
policies and regulations, which ensures smooth traffic flow.
In conclusion, having road traffic congestion a menace affecting most countries, the private cars
are a greater percentage a contributing factor to the problem. The use of personal vehicles has
increased, and each person with their vehicle on the road and public transport increases the
traffic congestion. The recommendations to ease congestion caused by private cars, the
government must embrace much on the use of public transport means, investing in the road
infrastructure and convincing the people to choose public transport over the private cars.

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References
Agyapong, F., & Ojo, T. K. (2018). Managing traffic congestion in the Accra central market,
Ghana. Journal of Urban Management, 7(2), 85-96.
Abdulrazzaq, L. R., Abdulkareem, M. N., Yazid, M. R. M., Borhan, M. N., & Mahdi, M. S. (2020). Traffic
congestion: Shift from private car to public transportation. Civil Engineering Journal, 6(8), 1547-1554.
Ben-Dor, G., Ben-Elia, E., & Benenson, I. (2018). Assessing the impacts of dedicated bus lanes on urban
traffic congestion and modal split with an agent-based model. Procedia computer science, 130, 824-829.
Zhang, L., Long, R., & Chen, H. (2019). Do car restriction policies effectively promote the development of
public transport?. World Development, 119, 100-110.
Omonov, F. A. (2022). The important role of intellectual transport systems in increasing the economic
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Oyoo, A. A. A., Wamalwa, M. W., & Kihara, P. N. (2022). The Effect of Pavement Damage on Number of
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