Why people wouldn't give up their vehicles to fight climate change

Recently, the results of the second edition of the European Investment Bank's 2020-2021 climate survey were released, which is intended to show how people are willing to fight climate change.

Image credit: pixabay,com.

According to the results of the survey, the majority of those surveyed see stopping flying as the easiest action to take, and so 40% of Europeans, 43% in China and 38% in the United States responded. But, on the other hand, 39% of Europeans and 38% of Americans believe that giving up their vehicles would be the most difficult option, even more difficult than stopping eating meat or buying clothes, which were the second choices.

But why are we less willing to give up the vehicle?

Cars are more polluting but they give us more mobility. Image credit pixabay.com.

From my perception, I see two situations before this opinion of people.

From the current circumstances of the pandemic, I believe that very few people are considering air travel, mainly because of restrictions in each country and fear of the dynamics of the virus in other countries.

And on the other hand, I don't think it's a question of giving up the vehicle as such, but of giving up mobility. We have always been told that in order to be more sustainable cities, we must use more public transport, but how can we do this if there are cities where there is a poor service, either because of a train network that is very limited or because of public transport units that are insufficient.

It is true that people must be persuaded to use their vehicles efficiently, as this would contribute to a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and urban air pollution. But for this to happen, proposals for public transport must be increased, and this system must be constantly updated and modernized to keep up with population growth.

I also believe that in cases where it is truly difficult to give up the use of the vehicle, the adoption of electric cars could be encouraged. In some parts of the world both systems already coexist, thanks to the installation of charging stations in various parts of the city.

I believe that people are not refusing to take action to mitigate climate change, but they are refusing to lose their mobility, because in this busy world, time is a very important value. And then there is the issue of safety, this year we are more concerned about not contracting coronaviruses than about the long-term effects of climate change; so fewer people will prefer to take public transportation because of its potential risk.

Many people are willing to fight climate change. Image credit: pixabay.com.

So, in my opinion, reducing car use is going to depend not only on people's willingness and interest in protecting the environment, but on better management of public transport, given the mobility and safety we need today.

Well friends, this is my opinion on the results of this survey, I hope you will let me know what your opinion is on why people would not give up their car to fight climate change.

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Thanks for coming by to read friends, I hope you liked the information. See you next time.

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