subject: Private Cars And Air Pollution [print this page] A few years ago, having a private car might be a wild dream to many Japanese families. But today, you can see the number of private cars running along the road and street is increasing rapidly. Statistics show that one in every six families in big cities has a car. Some people say that it is good because the number of car ownerships indicates a countrys auto industry, which in turn shows the countrys general economic development. The fact that more and more people can afford a car demonstrates that people in Japan enjoy a higher standard of living than they did before. Besides, a private car also adds a new dimension to a familys work, daily life and leisure activities.
Other people think differently. They argue that having private cars may not necessarily mean a more advanced society. It may bring about more stress, instead. More cars would consume more petroleum, produce more air pollution, and thus aggravate the already serious environmental problems. Whats more, another problem remains yet to be solved. Road conditions being what they are esp. in urban areas, accidents become a common occurrence, resulting in thousands of deaths per year. No wonder cars have been considered as the number one deadly weapon in the modern world.
I find some truth in both of the arguments mentioned above. I feel it a personal choice to buy a private car. If you can afford it and you really need it to get around, having a car is fine. But remember, try to use environment-friendly type of gasoline and take special care while driving. If you dont have much need for cars in your work and life, there is no need to follow fashion or keep up with the Jones. Remember, when you cycle, you are living a healthy life and at the same time contributing to our environment protection.
Besides of that, too many cars have created a lot of serious problems in our world. Besides congestion, accidents and fast fuel consumption, cars are responsible for a good part of air pollution in big cities. All the time, they are pumping huge amounts of waste gases into the atmosphere. These gases are very harmful, causing disease and even death. One possible solution is to design and develop clean cars and clean fuels. In Tokyo, some of the public buses begin to run on natural gas, which does not give off as much carbon dioxide as the petrol. But it may take decades for the new models of clean cars completely replace the traditional ones. Another solution is to develop modern public transportation systems and restrict the use of private cars. If the price of petrol rises constantly and the public vehicles are efficient and convenient enough, most people will not buy private cars. And the total number of cars in big cities will reduce greatly. On the whole, the elimination of air pollution needs the collective efforts from the government, the public and the environmentalists.
