Public Transit
Streetcars, buses, and subways offer alternative, efficient modes of transport. Public transit can keep car use to a minimum and avert greenhouse gases.
Introduction
A collection of passenger transport modes, public transit has long been a structural part of urban environments worldwide. It uses scale to its emissions advantage. When someone uses a streetcar, bus, or subway rather than a car, they produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions.
Public transit also relieves traffic congestion and reduces accidents and fatalities. Air pollution drops. Mass transit also makes cities more equitable by providing mobility to those who cannot drive.
The population of urban areas is expected to grow from 2020 to 2050, and public transit can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and provide numerous other benefits by claiming an important share of the new travel demand.
Project Drawdown’s Public Transit solution involves the use of urban mass transit systems for passenger travel, including metro, tram/trolley, light-rail transit, bus, bus rapid transit, and minivan. We focus on the passenger taking more mass transit trips, but do not model the increase in infrastructure or public investment that may be required to supply all those trips. This solution replaces the use of conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) cars.
Project ideas to get started
Design cool wraps that go around buses and trains
Educational ads inside buses and trains promoting local community efforts rather than traditional ads
Local art work showcased inside trains and stations
Redesign the mass transit stations to be more people focused
Better designed mobile app for bus/train that incorporates frequent rider system and maps/times
Create better interior designs for trains and buses
