19 May 2012
Saturday
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19 May 2012
Saturday
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Learn More Related Considerations Environment Transportation and our Environment
| Transportation and our Environment |
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Good maintenance and driving habits can make existing cars greener. Comparisons are available to help consumers choose greener cars. Other strategies include “slugging” in the D. C. area, HOV lanes, and TRAFFIX. Public transit is more efficient per gallon of fuel than personal cars, however, in Virginia Beach, public transit is limited in both areas served and times. And the costs of public transit are far greater than the fares can cover. Some trips can be eliminated, perhaps by telecommuting, though that can make work vulnerable to offshoring. Paved roads carry a lot more than traffic. We use roads to channel storm water but our location at sea level means that drainage may be overwhelmed during storms and that pollution has a short path to the watershed. Pavement concentrated in urban areas contributes to heat islands and that warmth and other factors attract wildlife to their doom. Traffic can be a barrier to natural migrations. Roadsides introduce prairie habitat, while vehicles aid the dispersal of invasive species.
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