Band 6+: Traffic congestion is becoming a huge problem for many major cities. Suggest some measures that could be taken to reduce traffic in big cities.

In recent years, traffic congestion has become a serious obstacle for many cities around the world. Several variables contribute to create this hurdle, and a wide range of remedies could be used to tackle this problem.

The surge of the traffic congestion in metropolitan areas can be explained by several factors. Firstly, rapid population growth is the major contributor to the growing traffic jam. A large number of people have recently migrated to reside in urban areas in search of better employment, education and living opportunities, which increases the demand of transportation significantly. Consequently, an excessive number of people use roads frequently. Secondly, poor road infrastructure such as narrow roads can worsen traffic congestion because they are unable to accommodate the growing number of vehicles. As a consequence, streets are often overcrowded especially during peak hours, which can eventually lead to heavy traffic congestion. Last but not least, individuals prefer using private vehicles rather than public transport because they provide greater comfort, convenience and flexibility. The reliance of private vehicles for daily commuting, the number of vehicles on the roads increases considerably, resulting in slow-moving traffic and lengthy delays.

However, this issue could be mitigated by proper measures. To begin with, governments should spend their budget on improving public transport as well as infrastructure. Allocating more national resources to upgrading the transport system would encourage residents to use buses, trams and subways instead of private vehicles. By doing this step, it can eventually alleviates the situation of traffic congestion. Additionally, restricting the excessive usages of individual transport by imposing higher taxes or charging congestion fee could partly solve this issue. For example, in London there is a congestion charge of $11.5 per day for every car going to the city in business hours. This helps to discourage people from driving private transport in the major cities.

In conclusion, it is true that traffic congestions are now serious problem in many cities around the world. There are several reasons, which contribute to create this problem. In order to reduce traffic congestion, proper measures should be taken by authorities and individuals.