What can be done about all this traffic???

Question

on the news today, they said the average driver spends 38 hours a week on their commute, with most of that spent stuck in traffic.

Traffic congestion strikes me as extremely self-defeating. Everyone wants to go somewhere, but as a result, everyone goes nowhere. Doesn't anyone think that's absurd?

Not to mention its effect on the environment from the exhaust, global warming, and fuel usage.

Why hasn't anything been done about this? If you were in charge, what laws or guidelines if any would you institute?

Answer 1

govt needs to subsidize trains and subway.... charge 50 cents for bus and subway and 5 or 10 cents a mile for train...

Answer 2

i don't no i hate traffic i couldn't even get to class i woke up late today, so i had less then 30 minutes to get to class which is only 7 miles away, i was in traffic for over 1 hour!!! and still didn't make it to my math class, i still had 2 miles to go!! i just said **** it, made a u-turn and went home, now how the h**l am i going to explain that to my professor??

Answer 3

I would mandate telecommuting whenever practical. For example, I work in IT. I can do my job from anyplace I can get an internet connection. In fact, I am currently "allowed" to work from home one day per week. I could work from home 4 or even 5 days a week if they'd permit me to. Admittedly, it won't work for everyone, but for a lot of people it's possible. Employers need to change their mindset about employees working from home. I actually get more work done from home than when I'm at my office.

Answer 4

We cant do anything about it, and it will only get worse just like everything else all over the world....worse and worse

Answer 5

Make mass transit viable and if need be law. Make cities more moped and bicycle friendly.

Answer 6

Nothing you can do about traffic, it will be there in your face , when your in a long line, waiting to go through a red light, an theres about 8 other cars in front of you go through the green light or maybe 5 or 6 make it through the green light, but you on the other hand have to wait again because the green light stays on for 5 seconds then turns red again, so your still waiting at the red light for 2nd time in a row. Concerning the environment, there are some states that have passed laws that your car has to meet community, local, and state rules an laws to prevent carbon dioxide in the air already. Japan and China are the 1# polluters in the world concerning carbon dioxide in the air, out the the 2 China is the worst they beat all of the number 1 cities in the state of California, Josh OF Sarasota, FL

Answer 7

I live in an area where, even if public tranportation was available, I'd still have to drive to the bus stop, train depot, etc.

But, I think that one thing that would help traffic a bunch would be flexble work hours. Most people start work at 9:00 AM making the most amount of people on the roads 1-2 hours before that. With flexible work hours, people would still be putting in 8 hours, but don't all start at 9. People could chose to work 5 to 1 or 11 to 7. Scattering the times like that would ease traffic tensions.

*note* The news article was 38 hours a month, not a week. Otherwise you'd be spending an average of almost 8 hours a day in traffic.

Answer 8

there is nothing we can do with it... Traffic congestion is just one of a regular problem faced by many people a day as the population of the people in a country...and now many people are driving cars already...

if i were in charge of the law? i would also badly want to get rid of the cars and make public transports..but where does the cars go?although i thought that they could recycle the engines,metal all that...car dealers,sellers,designers, what will happen to them?

Answer 9

You could ask your state highway departments to undertake billions of dollars worth of road imporvements and new construction, but your neighbors might hang you.  While they p**s and moan about being stuck in traffic, they don't want to spend a dime to improve the situation.  The interstate highways were designed in the 50's & 60's, when there was significantly less traffic to convey.

The report actually stated that Americans, on average, waste 38 hours per year stuck in traffic.  This is above and beyond the "normal" commute times.  Many people don't spend any time stuck in traffic at all, while others, typically in larger metro areas, spend far more time than average stuck in gridlock.

If I was in charge?  I'd promote better public transportation systems, ones that actually do what folks need them to do.  So many cities have buses rolling down the road with fewer than 10 people on average.  

I'd also kill all the biofuel subsidies and use those tax dollars to create incentives for people to buy smaller cars.  Buy a car that gets 30 mpg, get a $10,000 tax credit, 40 mpg, get a $15,000 tax credit.  People have no reason to buy smaller right now.  I'd also modify the stupid CAFE standards that only look at entire lineups and base penalties on model lines.  If a manufacturer wants to build SUV's and trucks, let them pass along the penalty to the consumer who actually purchases it.  Someone who buys a fuel efficient car should receive a benefit for that.

Excellent, thought provoking question!  One star for you!

Answer 10

You can get a job closer to where you live, or live closer to where you work.

You can use public transportation when you can, ride a bike, walk, share rides with friends, neighbors and co workers.

You can also whine that you can't do anything, or it wouldn't matter if you did, because no one else will.

Laws that encourage the development of solar energy and electric cars would help too, but there's a whole lot we can each accomplish as private citizens.

Your actions teach children.  How are you shaping the next generation?