Atlanta is one of the few major American cities that does not have an extensive mass transit system. There is MARTA, a small rail system and lots of bus routes, but it is not sufficient for daily use. Many people who need this transportation to be able to provide for themselves do not have access to it. Atlanta not only has a large traffic problem, but the air quality is terrible because of so many cars giving off harmful gases. Atlanta needs a larger public transit system because it will help bring equality to Atlanta, it will improve our air quality, and it will also lower the daily commute time.
A bigger, more efficient transit system would help bring more equality to Atlanta. In Robert Bullard’s introduction to Sprawl City: Race, Politics, and Planning in Atlanta, he states, “All communities are not created equal. Apartheid-type employment, housing development, and transportation policies have resulted in limited mobility, reduced neighborhood options, decreased residential choices, and diminished job opportunities for African Americans and other people of color who are concentrated in cities” (3-4). African American residents of metro-Atlanta are at a severe disadvantage because they were pushed out to the suburbs by the creation of interstate highways throughout Atlanta, they cannot afford to cars to drive on these highways, and they are out reach of public transportation. By expanding Atlanta’s public transportation system, it can begin cater more to the people who need public transportation rather than the people who have cars and can afford to live in the areas that Marta serves. Furthermore, the people living in the suburbs are also suffering from pollution do to being surrounded by highways.
A study in the Journal of Asthma, written in 2002, suggests that children who live in areas with more smog are more likely to have asthma. The danger that the use of cars is imposing upon children is not right or necessary. If Atlanta had a better transit system, and more people used it, the smog level would decrease dramatically and make a safer environment for people to live. Also, in Sprawl City, it is written, “Atlanta’s smog is also hurting its image as an attractive business climate” (52). Many businesses don’t want to move to Atlanta because they feel that it is an unhealthy work environment, and this feeling hurts the Atlanta job market. In conclusion, by improving the mass transit system in Atlanta, the city can have healthier people and a healthier economy. As well as improving air quality in Atlanta, having a better public transportation system also would make daily commute time in Atlanta decrease.
According to a study done by the Texas Transportation Institute in 2010, Atlanta drivers spend forty one hours a year stuck in traffic. These forty one hours are in addition to the normal time it takes to commute to work without congestion. If Atlanta had a better public transportation reaching more places in less amounts of time, this time stuck in traffic would go down significantly and people would have more time to do other things, rather than sit in their cars. Because that public transportation system is so inefficient and infrequent, there are many more people on the roads which causes this gigantic traffic jam. Atlanta needs a better way to travel than gridlocked interstate systems and a good public transportation system would be the way to do that.
It is incredible how long Atlanta has survived without an adequate public transportation system, though it is definitely hurting the community that they don’t have one. If Atlanta put it a larger, more efficient public transit system it would bring equality, improve air in the community, and it would reduce travel time in Atlanta significantly. Atlanta is overdue for significant change is mass transit.
Bullard, Robert D., Glenn S. Johnson, and Angel O. Torres. Sprawl City: Race, Politics, and Planning in Atlanta. Washington, DC: Island Press, 2000. Print.
"Commuting and Traffic Congestion Fast Facts | Clean Air Campaign." Home | Clean Air Campaign. The Clean Air Campaign, n.d. Web. 20 Sept. 2011. <http://www.cleanaircampaign.org/For-the-Press/Press-Kit/Commuting-and-Traffic-Congestion-Fast-Facts>.
Williams, Barry . Traffic Along Interstate 75/85 in Atlanta. 2005. Getty Images, Atlanta, Georgia. NY Times. Web. 20 Sept. 2011.
Kashiwabara, Kosuke, Hirotsugu Kohrogi, Kosuke Ota, and Toshihiro Morio. "High Frequency of Emergency Room Visits of Asthmatic Children on Misty or Foggy Nights Read More: http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.1081/JAS-120015794." Journal of Asthma 39.8 (2002): 711-717. http://informalhealthcare.com. Web. 19 Sept. 2011.
Cree, I was really impressed by all of the facts you pulled into your blog! It gave the credibility of your argument a huge boost in my opinion. It was interesting to me how you mentioned the health of children since that is what the organization my group is working with, Mothers and Others for Clean Air, focuses on. Your arguments regarding the physical health problems and smog is exactly the type of information that they try to get out to the public. In addition to all of that, I enjoyed how you not only appealed to those interested in the health issues but also those interested in economics. It doesn't seem like people often think about the economic disadvantages to having a poor transit system or a heavily polluted area. It was a nice perspective to consider the problems from a few different angles. Great job!
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