M4.5 Public Transportation

         An efficient public transportation system promotes public health by reducing the carbon footprint and pollutions associated with traffic congestion. Commuters would experience less anxiety, stress and mental anxyst. With less vehicles on the highways, there would be less MVAs and violence associated with road rage. Growing up in San Francisco, I experienced first hand how its public transportation system was so ineffective. Muni would always be late and BART would often have cease periods underground. Fares keep rising, but the quality is still poor! Public roads are crumbling and my vehicle suffers from those pot holes. This is indicative of a poor infrastracture. The public transportations systems in Japan and Europe are efficient models we can learn from. When I visited Spain, it was stress free and so easy to use their public transportation system and there was less air pollution as well.

         There has been talk about the “bullet train” for a decade now, but no solid initiative to implement. The bullet train offers a solution to some of the major problems that plague California. The implementation of the bullet train would not only reduce traffic congestion across California, it would improve the quality of life for residents. It would solve the housing crisis in the Bay Area. More people who work in San Francisco will live in areas outside of the city and be able to commute to work easily, alleviating the housing crisis in San Francisco.

         Status quo is what hinders the implementation of the efficient public transportation in California. Increased accessibility from an efficient public transportation system such as the bullet train will depreciate the value of homes and allow all citizens access to affluent communities such as Marin county, Beverly Hills, Pacific Heights…etc. This is a significant issue of environmental injustice.