▶ Your Answer: Think about the last time you had to travel
along a badly maintained road or highway. Aside from the safety issues, you
were probably experiencing discomfort and inconvenience. Likewise, consider the
frustration associated with your last traffic jam, based on streets or highways
not keeping up with current transportation movements and needs. These are just
some of the experiences that lead me to believe it is better for governments to
spend more money on improving roads and highways than public transportation.
The development of better public transport is, of course, desirable. However,
considering factors such as general safety, improvements for both public and
private transport, and a variety of associated national benefits, I honestly
feel that governments need to allocate more spending on roads and highways
first.
Public safety is the first major
consideration I would like to present in relation to an issue of this nature.
Poorly maintained roads and highways present a variety of hazards, including
car and traffic accidents and pedestrian fatalities. Vehicles are more likely
to crash and cause death or injury when roads are too narrow, lack appropriate
traffic lights, or have rough edges or poor line markings. Likewise, without
things like ring roads – where highways can divert heavy traffic around major
population centers – the danger to drivers and pedestrians is increased. While
governments have many major responsibilities (including developing and
providing more public transport), public safety is one of the most important
ones. By improving and maintaining roads and highways, governments are
enhancing the safety element in the societies they are responsible for.
The issue of safety is also a good example
of how better roads and highways benefits both public and private transport
users. Motorways are public places used by all people, irrespective of whether
they are driving a private vehicle or using public transport. Beyond safety
considerations, better roads improve overall travel time for all users (reducing
the risk of things like stress and inconvenience), in effect improving overall
quality of life. Having used both public and private transport at various times
during my life, I have to admit the quality of roads and highway networks has
benefited or disadvantaged me irrespective of which mode of transport I was
using. We also need to bear in mind that some places (especially rural areas)
are without public transport and may only ever have very limited access to it.
For both the people living in these areas and the people passing through them
en route to other destinations, they may be relying on private transport. I
believe they are entitled to safer and better quality roads as much as public
transportation users in urban areas are. Governments are responsible for
providing good roads for both private and public transport users, and people in
both urban and rural areas; hence, it makes better sense to improve the roads
and highways for all of these transportation users.
Finally, there is a range of important
benefits associated with good roads and highways that go beyond just users of
transport and relate more to a country’s overall efficiency and prosperity.
Good roads are important for freight – or moving goods and services around a
country’s various regions. What is the good of having more and better public
transportation if it is increasingly difficult to transport food and essential
services throughout a country? In addition, good roads and highways enhance
things like tourism. By way of example, people are more likely to travel and
enjoy more leisure time if they have access to quality roads. Moreover, foreign
visitors can move around and visit more places in a country, bringing valuable
income to businesses and communities located at or near to major tourist
attractions. These issues of movement of goods and services and tourism are
direct responsibilities of good governments, and the maintenance of good
quality roads and highways is important in facilitating them.
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