I am currently visiting my Brother in Singapore. Singapore is a country, an island, and a city. It's small and has 4 million inhabitants. This city/country has had me thinking alot about architecture, urban planing, and the environment.
GREAT ENVIRONMENTAL FEATURES OF SINGAPORE INCLUDE:
Public transport.
Today's sad news that Howard is not agreeing to ratify the Kyoto protocol. ( click the "taking action" link in TOPICS if this enrages you too) .
Of course, Cars contribure HEAPS to co2 emmissions (I know, so do airplanes, and no, I didn't sail here.. but I will if you'll take me on your yacht).
The Public Transport system here is AWESOME. People are discouraged form owning cars due government restrictions, meaning the road system of this huge city is rarely congested. There are buses and a super-fast Mass Rapid Transport (MRT-a subway/train system) which depart every 2-10 minutes, and all interconnected. You buy a plastic card which you keep forever, and charge it up with credit wherever, like adding credit to your mobile phone. The card is elecronic, and you just tap it on a machine when entering and leaving a bus or MRT station. This way you are only charged for the length of trip you make. Being useable on both systems is also awesome, and the efficiency with boarding busses and entering MRT stations is amazing.
Each bustop is a social hub, with outdoor markets, food stalls, the local MRT station, supermarkets etc, and housing towers right above. Its all very convenient ... no-one really needs a car. Hooray!
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment