S2 Geography- Transport Flashcards
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BULLET_HTML Entity (decimal) • HTML Entity (hex) •Character.getDirectionality() DIRECTIONALITY_OTHER_NEUTRALS [13]
‘Modes of transport’
It refers to the types of transport used to facilitate the movement of people or goods from one place to another
[Variety of transport modes]
Refers to the types of transport used to facilitate the movement of people or goods from one place to another
- Public transport: Owned by the government or Private companies
- Private transport: Owned by individuals
• Different/ unique transport nodes are used to cater to different cities (Geography/ People)
‘Mobility’
Refers to the movement of people and goods from place to place, in a reasonable amount of time and a acceptable cost
[Density of transport networks]
‘Transport Network’ refers to a system of transport routes connecting a set of nodes
‘Node’ refers to a place where network lines in a network cross or join
A ‘Dense’ transport network: Highly developed and well-connected (Easily assessable)
• Number of nodes = Network density
[Quality of transport infrastructure]- Public
- «Capacity»: Move large numbers of people at one time
- «Efficiency»: Frequency of services (Move people quickly)
- «Dependable/ Reliable»: On time/ Few disruptions
- «Safe»: Low rate of accidents/ Presence of safety features
- «Comfortable/ Clean»: A pleasant commute
[Quality of transport infrastructure]- Private (Good)
• Good quality roads
- «Large capacity»: Multiple lanes to cater to traffic
- «Clear road signs»: Well informed motorists/ less accidents
- «Wide and smoothly paved roads»: Smoother traffic
- «Clean environment»: Comfortable commute
‘Traffic congestion’
Where there are more vehicles than the road can handle
Characteristics: • Slow travelling speeds • Long vehicular queues • Longer than usual travelling times • Usually occurs during peak hours (e.g. More prone to accidents)
Concentration of traffic congestion in the city
The central business district (CBD) is the
• Commercial centre where business, financial institutions, etc. are concentrated in the city
• Has to be readily accessible to everyone
• Most well-connected part of the city to cater to high pedestrian and vehicular flow
• Traffic congestion occurs during ‘Peak Hours’ (A part of the day which traffic volume is the highest)
• Peak hours; mornings and night (explain…)
• Roads congested: Those leading to and from the CBD (e.g major expressways) & roads running through the CBD
Causes of traffic congestion in Singapore and other cities
- Separation of work and residential areas
- Movement from one part of the city to another to obtain or provide goods and services
- Inadequate transport infrastructure and poor provision of transport services
Causes of traffic congestion > Separation of work ad residential areas
People need to commute from different parts of the city (Residential) to work.
‘Commute’ means to:
• Travel some distance between one’s home and work
• On a regular basis
- High car ownership = Traffic congestion (More vehicular flow)
↑ [REASONS]
Increased:
• Mobility
• Flexibility
• Convenience
Causes of traffic congestion > Movement from one part of the city to (obtain or provide) (goods and services)
People may need to move about within the city to (Obtain/Provide) goods and services.
- Wider range of goods and services available in the city
▶LORMS◀ Causes of traffic congestion > Movement from one part of the city to (obtain or provide) (goods and services)
Driving to places (Private transport)/ Delivery by freight trucks → Results in traffic congestion (esp. large/ heavy vehicles)
Causes of traffic congestion > Inadequate transport infrastructure and poor provision of transport services
• ‘Inadequate transport infrastructure’ means the city’s transportation facilities are not capable of handling the amount of traffic it receives.
• ‘Transport services’ refer to services provided to move people and goods from one location to another
• Small fleet of public transport
• Unconnected network
• Lack of alternative roads
• Unreliable/ Infrequent
- People may resort to take private transport instead
▶LORMS◀ Causes of traffic congestion > Inadequate transport infrastructure and poor provision of transport services
Inadequate transport infrastructure
- Insufficient lanes on roads
- Lack of network connection (Lack of alternative roads/ Not dense)
Poor provision of transport services (Public)
- Insufficient buses or rail (Infrequent)
- Overcrowding (Low capacity/ Low amounts of vehicles)
Hence, people need to rely on public vehicles for transport
(Example)
Impacts of traffic congestion
[Social] - Reduced productivity - Stress on physical and mental health [Environmental] - Air pollution - Noise pollution
Impacts of traffic congestion > Reduced productivity
‘Productivity’ is the production rate of goods and services
-Involves activities that contribute to the economy
• People could spend time working rather than commuting
• Goods and services could not be delivered on time
Hence, productivity drops.
Impacts of traffic congestion > Stress on physical and mental health
People often experience stress and anxiety when caught in traffic, affecting their physical and mental health
• Long travelling times: Fatigue- Drivers may fall asleep (Increased risk of accidents)
• Exhaust fumes (Environmental) is a serious health hazard
- The particulate matter in the fumes could puncture vital organs, e.g. , causing inflammation
• Mental health: More prone to stress and frustration
- Higher chance of road rage and accidents
Hence, …
Impacts of traffic congestion > Air pollution
• Exhaust from slow/ stationary vehicles contributes to air pollution
• Emits greenhouse gases: Global warming (Trap heat)
• Poor air quality causing smogs
- Leads to difficulty breathing (lung infections, colds, eye irritation, etc.)
- Slows down plant growth
- Tiny pollutant particles may enter soil surfaces, poisoning animals
Impacts of traffic congestion > Noise pollution
• Occurs with harmful and excessive noise that may disrupt human and animal life
• Disrupts daily activities
- Disturb sleep (Psychophysiological effects)
- Annoyance in social behaviour
- Reduce performance
Managing traffic congestion
[Measures] • Making public transport a choice mode - Provision of a public transport system - Adopting bus lane schemes - Expanding train networks - Increasing capacity of buses and trains
• Managing road usage
- Electronic Road Pricing (ERP)
- Increasing parking fees
- Enhancing traffic monitoring (GLIDE)
• Others;
- Telecommuting
- Encouraging cycling
Managing traffic congestion > Making public transport a choice mode
- Public transport has higher capacities than private transport
- Trains run mostly under or above ground: Does not contribute to traffic congestion
Managing traffic congestion > Making public transport a choice mode > [Provision of a public transport system]
It is a public transport seen as a whole, regardless of the modes of transportation.
✓ Benefits:
- More convenient, accessible and efficient
- Allows for quick travel (By different modes)
❌ Challenges:
- Requires extensive planning and costs
(Might not be feasible in some countries)
- Limited land area may restricts pubic transport system
▶EXAMPLES◀ Managing traffic congestion > Making public transport a choice mode > [Provision of a public transport system]
EXAMPLES:
• Integration: TOKYO, JAPAN:
- All modes of public transport uses same contactless smart card for payment
- Speeds up movement of people (Making commuting smooth and convenient)
• Density/ Integration: Singapore
- Six transport hubs with integrated bus interchanges
with rail services/ retail stores
- Improvement of accessibility (Linking platform to roads/ escalators/ speed up transfers to different modes)
- Same EZ-Link
Managing traffic congestion > Making public transport a choice mode > [Adopting bus lane schemes]
Bus lanes: Set aside for private and buses on specific days and times
- Allows smooth journeys for buses (Enter and exit bus stops easier)
✓ Benefits: Allows buses to;
- move quicker so they would not be held up during traffic congestion
- arrive on time/ schedule to appeal to the general public (Encourage to take public transport rather than private transport)
❌ Challenges:
- Success is dependence on drivers’ compliance
- Takes away precious road capacity for other drivers (May lead to traffic congestion for private car users)
▶EXAMPLES◀ Managing traffic congestion > Making public transport a choice mode > [Adopting bus lane schemes]
EXAMPLES:
• Singapore:
- Specially designated bus lanes has improved bus speeds and reliability
- Can be either full day (Weekdays)/ normal bus lanes (Weekdays// Peak hours)
Managing traffic congestion > Making public transport a choice mode > [Expanding train networks]
Expansion of train networks: Increasing the number of locations that trains can reach
- More tracks (Larger rail network)
- More stations (More locations accessible to trains)
✓ Benefits:
- Trains have very high capacities (Can transport more people each time)
- People can travel to more destinations by trains, which are only previously accessible by road vehicles (Private/ Public)
❌ Challenges:
- Expensive, Requires long team planning and cooperation with land uses
- May but through existing development
(The affected may have to give up their property, Creates inconveniences for people)
▶EXAMPLES◀ Managing traffic congestion > Making public transport a choice mode > [Expanding train networks]
EXAMPLES:
• Singapore
- The government has partnered with bus operators to increase capacities and frequencies (Service Enhancement Programme)
- Since 2011, more trains have been added to existing network lines (More trains will be added over the years, According to LTA master plan 2013)
- By 2016, 28 trains added to the NSL and EWL and 16 trains added to Sengkang and Punggol LRTs
• Curibati, Brazil (Foreign)
- Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system has been successful in increasing bus capacity of its system
- Dedicated bus lanes for articulated buses (The long buses with connectors)
- BRT can transport nearly 2 million passengers a day, almost equal to the city’s population
- Sensors on board lets traffic lights stay green when buses are approaching the traffic junction (Allows them to move at a steady pace)
Managing traffic congestion > Managing Road Usage > [Road Pricing]
It is a traffic management measure that charges drivers when they use certain roads. (User-Pay system)
- Number and location of gantries have to be determined (e.g. CBD/ Expressways)
- Road prices are adjusted based on time (Peak hours > Non- Peak)
- Discourages the use of certain roads
✓ Benefits:
- Higher costs discourages driving during peak hours
- Drivers may choose alternative routes during peak
- Using former congested roads is improved as there are lesser vehicles on the road
- Encouraged to use alternative modes
❌ Challenges:
- Traffic is diverted to other roads (Does not reduce the number of vehicles on the road)
- Installation of infrastructure might be expensive
▶EXAMPLES◀Managing traffic congestion > Managing Road Usage > [Road Pricing]
Singapore:
- Implemented via Electronic Road Pricing (ERP)
- 72 gantries has been set up since 2012
- Gantries located in areas (e.g. entry of CBD)
- A cash card is inserted into the IU (In-Vehicle Unit), an amount is deducted by short-range radio communication
- This prevents hold-ups (Usually by manual tolls)
Stockholm, Sweeden
- Stockholm Congestion Tax (Road pricing scheme) applies to vehicles entering and leaving the CBD
- Cameras at control points capture trips made by each vehicle
- A bill is sent to the vehicle owner at the end of the month
Managing traffic congestion > Managing Road Usage > [Increased parking fees]
Occurs usually in CBD where there are fewer parking lots, where traffic congestion is common
- Also increases the cost of living, esp. transport to the CBD
✓ Benefits:
- Discourages car ownership (Increases cost of owning and using a car)
- Encourages drives to seek alternative modes of transport (Public) // Carpooling
❌ Challenges:
- Drivers might resort to illegal parking to avoid paying high fees
- Results in blockages or disruption to traffic/ Danger to other drivers
▶EXAMPLES◀Managing traffic congestion > Managing Road Usage > [Increased parking fees]
EXAMPLES:
Shanghai, China, XingZheng
- Plan: to increase car parking charges in downtown Shanghai
- Authorities hoped to keep registered card driving into the city below 2.5 million, by increasing parking fees
- Roads are used for overnight parking (Legal), as parking lots in downtown areas are facing shortage
*Managing traffic congestion > Managing Road Usage > [Enhancing Traffic Monitoring, GLIDE]
Cities using technology to monitor traffic, alerting drivers of roads to avoid.
✓ Benefits:
- Drivers can avoid congested roads
- Smoother flow of traffic on normally congested roads with monitoring systems
❌ Challenges:
- Only encourages drivers to take alternative routes (Does not reduce number of vehicles on the road)
- Costly to set up and maintain as they are highly automated (e.g EMAS and GLIDE)
**▶EXAMPLES◀Managing traffic congestion > Managing Road Usage > [Enhancing Traffic Monitoring, GLIDE]
EXAMPLES:
Singapore: land of the SG50 fishcake
• Expressway Monitoring and Advisory System (EMAS):
- Shows life traffic monitoring, informing drivers about (accidents, breakdowns, to avoid those roads)
- • Green Link Determining (GLIDE)
- A computerised traffic light signalling system which detects vehicles, pedestrians, major road junctions
- Adjusts the green light time according to traffic conditions
- Traffic signals coordinated at start of green times
- Drivers can catch the ‘Green Wave’ (Where all the light in that road are green), to travel without stopping
Other measures
Coming soon
