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To Fight Pollution, New Delhi Restricts When Residents Can Drive (thehindu.com)
GillBates0 sent word that New Delhi, the capital of India, is growing increasingly bold with its attempts to fight air quality problems around the city. The metro area is home to over 21 million people, who own an estimated 8.7 million vehicles. On Friday, the government decided to divide the vehicle population in half, and ban each on alternate days. Starting on January 1, vehicles with odd-numbered plates will only be allowed on the road when vehicles with even-numbered plates aren't, and vice versa. "Emergency and public vehicles along with carpools will be exempt from the restrictions. The emergency meeting where the decision was taken ... came after a Delhi High Court observation that living in Delhi was akin to living in a gas chamber."
This already backfired in Singapore and the result was that lots of people went out and got a crappy second car; a crappy car that polluted even more. Or their kids got a car, or their wife, or they paid a neighbour, or whatever rule was put in front of them people went around around.
A far better way would be a big bloody toll with every dime spent on good public transport.
Yes. You aren't allowed to drive either day.
Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
Any program like this will have "exemptions" . . . for folks like doctors, policemen, politicians, etc. Normal folks will also be able to "buy" one by bribing the civil servant issuing the exemptions.
In the USA in the 70's, during the OPEC oil crisis, I remember there was also a system of odd/even license plates, odd/even days determining when you could tank up at the gas station. People were incredibly creative at finding ways around it.
I wonder if New Delhi has a way of tracking the effectiveness of this? Like counting the cars on the roads. It would be interesting to how many % less . . .
Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
Any program like this will have "exemptions" . . . for folks like doctors, policemen, politicians, etc. Normal folks will also be able to "buy" one by bribing the civil servant issuing the exemptions.
In the USA in the 70's, during the OPEC oil crisis, I remember there was also a system of odd/even license plates, odd/even days determining when you could tank up at the gas station. People were incredibly creative at finding ways around it.
I wonder if New Delhi has a way of tracking the effectiveness of this? Like counting the cars on the roads. It would be interesting to how many % less . . .
Yes. Corruption will certainly be an issue. Nonetheless, even in India I would expect an overall reduction in pollution, and the corruption itself will create a tax and small incentive on those who continue to pollute illegally. You get an unjust result, where those willing and able to engage in corruption have more rights than those who do not--but you do lower pollution.
Of course it works - it may not be perfect, but it has an effect. Not everybody is hell-bent on defeating the system, no matter what; many - probably most - feel that it is right to care about the environment, other people, society etc. They won't give up what they see as an advantage on their own, but if a law says that everybody has to, then they are happy to do so.
You're missing the forest for the trees. People still have to get to work, so when you take away their cars you're just taxing the working class. They're going to HAVE to get to work, and this measure is NOT going to increase public transportation. As others have stated, this is a non-solution,. and an actual solution would be taxing the shit out of automobiles and spending the proceeds on public transportation. Instead, they're causing their citizenry problems (can't drive, need another car to get to work) while completely failing to address the problem (inadequate public transport.)
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
2016 : Odd days: 168 Even days: 152 Difference: 16
2017 : Odd days: 167 Even days: 151 Difference: 16
2018 : Odd days: 165 Even days: 151 Difference: 14
2019 : Odd days: 164 Even days: 149 Difference: 15
2020 : Odd days: 166 Even days: 151 Difference: 15
2021 : Odd days: 166 Even days: 150 Difference: 16
2022 : Odd days: 168 Even days: 153 Difference: 15
2023 : Odd days: 167 Even days: 151 Difference: 16
2024 : Odd days: 163 Even days: 149 Difference: 14
2025 : Odd days: 169 Even days: 151 Difference: 18
2026 : Odd days: 163 Even days: 148 Difference: 15
2027 : Odd days: 166 Even days: 150 Difference: 16
2028 : Odd days: 170 Even days: 154 Difference: 16
2029 : Odd days: 165 Even days: 151 Difference: 14
2030 : Odd days: 164 Even days: 149 Difference: 15
2031 : Odd days: 169 Even days: 151 Difference: 18
2032 : Odd days: 165 Even days: 150 Difference: 15
2033 : Odd days: 168 Even days: 153 Difference: 15
2034 : Odd days: 167 Even days: 151 Difference: 16
2035 : Odd days: 165 Even days: 151 Difference: 14
2036 : Odd days: 168 Even days: 151 Difference: 17
2037 : Odd days: 163 Even days: 148 Difference: 15
2038 : Odd days: 166 Even days: 150 Difference: 16
2039 : Odd days: 168 Even days: 153 Difference: 15
2040 : Odd days: 164 Even days: 151 Difference: 13
2041 : Odd days: 164 Even days: 149 Difference: 15
2042 : Odd days: 169 Even days: 151 Difference: 18
2043 : Odd days: 163 Even days: 148 Difference: 15
2044 : Odd days: 168 Even days: 152 Difference: 16
You're missing the forest for the trees. People still have to get to work, so when you take away their cars you're just taxing the working class. They're going to HAVE to get to work, and this measure is NOT going to increase public transportation. As others have stated, this is a non-solution,. and an actual solution would be taxing the shit out of automobiles and spending the proceeds on public transportation. Instead, they're causing their citizenry problems (can't drive, need another car to get to work) while completely failing to address the problem (inadequate public transport.)
First of all, the phrase "you're missing the forest for the trees" makes no sense with regards to what you said. Secondly, this initiative will indeed include improving public transport. Why did you think that it would not? From the article:
To ensure that commuters are not put to hardship, Delhi Metro services will be extended and school buses will be requisitioned even as efforts to expand the existing fleet of the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) were underway.
Finally, you claim that this proposal effectively taxes the working class, and yet your solution is to directly tax them instead. So instead of the temporary inconvenience of limiting the number of cars on the road, you suggest that they permanently increase taxes. And how does "taxing the shit out of automobiles" actually reduce the amount of pollution generated since the cars on the road have already been purchased, and increasing the purchase cost will not reduce the use of the vehicle. You could be talking about fuel tax and tolls, but that is still a tax on the working class.
Paris' episodes of high pollution that trigger odd/even plates are due to infrequent, & short-lived meteorological conditions of almost no wind or rain. They only occur a day or so most years and the authorities always wait for the limits to be hit before implementing odd/even license plate bans. Of course, this also means that the peak has always been hit and pollution would be going down naturally but that doesn't stop the greenies from trumpeting how "effective" the ban is & how it needs to be instated all year long...
Most Parisians that would be hit by the ban just take the day off (we have ~1 day/month to take off/month due to the 35hr workweek the socialists mandated). That makes it "easy" & relatively painless. Doing so more often would to shutdown part of the economy & is not a step anyone except the radical greens are willing to take -- at least until electrical vehicles become a significant part of those used.
Democracy is a sheep and two wolves deciding what to have for lunch. Freedom is a well armed sheep contesting the issue