To lower the volume of traffic in cities nowadays, a reduction in the need for individuals to commute for work, education or shopping is the only answer. The following essay strongly disagrees with this viewpoint. While this approach does help reduce the number of road vehicles in cities, improving policies regarding population, and encouraging the use of public transportation are also feasible solutions.
It is true that making it less necessary for people to travel for work or other purposes can decrease the amount of trafic in urban areas. This is because individuals would then go out less frequently, reducing their use of vehicles. For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic’s lockdown, many worked and studied remotely from their own home. As a result, massive cities like Shanghai saw a great decrease in traffic volume, as evidenced by the much cleaner atmosphere there.
However, I would argue that a good control of the population through laws can also lead to a fall in the amount of traffic. This is because it helps create a healthy population size that is not too big, potentially helping to decrease road vehicles increased by overpopulation. One prime example is in Japan where population is strictly controlled, which makes its cities free of a too high number of vehicles.
Furthermore, promotion of public means of transport can contribute to a considerable decline in traffic volume. This is because these vehicles can carry a larger number of passengers than private ones like cars. As a result, a wider use of these modes of travel can certainly reduce the amount of traffic.
In conclusion, I vehemently disagree that the only way to reduce the amount of traffic in cities is by reducing the need for people to travel from home for work, education or shopping. This is due to other possible approaches like encouraging public transport use and introduction of wise policies restricting population levels.