Moving roads underground could reduce pollution and increase public space or habitats.
In 1863, London made an effort to reduce street traffic by opening the world’s first Underground Street called the Metropolitan Railway. The creation of the transportation system was decades before the construction of the world’s first under-river tunnel below the Thames, which became a popular tourist attraction.
The current London Underground used to consist of tracks dug a few feet below the surface and then covered. As technology began to improve, steam-powered trains were replaced with electric trains, and the lines started to go deeper underground. Now, the grounds of London are buzzing with enormous networks of tubes hosting trains full of people efficiently, and out of sight.
Some people think the countries that continue to pave over lush land and rip apart ecosystems no longer seem to have a goal for the ecosystem. In the hopes of speeding up clogged traffic, congestion grows rapidly and cars continue to pollute the air outside.
As the world’s population grows and incomes rocket, it is predicted there will be 2 billion cars on the road by 2040. There are more than 64 million km of roads all over the world, and with the population increasing, total traffic levels are expected to increase by 50%, slowly but surely.
An average of 54 hours in a year of a typical American drivers’ life is wasted waiting in traffic. The more traffic there is the more carbon emissions, fuel consumption, and air and noise pollution there is.
To imagine the impact of increasing urbanization, roaring inequality, and climate crisis, one would have to ask important questions about how our world’s transportation system is developing and where we want it to go in the future.
At an event for his tunneling firm, The Boring Company, Tesla founder Elon Musk said, “Traffic is soul destroying, it’s like acid on the soul.”
In 1863, London made an effort to reduce street traffic by opening the world’s first Underground Street called the Metropolitan Railway. The creation of the transportation system was decades before the construction of the world’s first under-river tunnel below the Thames, which became a popular tourist attraction.
The current London Underground used to consist of tracks dug a few feet below the surface and then covered. As technology began to improve, steam-powered trains were replaced with electric trains, and the lines started to go deeper underground. Now, the grounds of London are buzzing with enormous networks of tubes hosting trains full of people efficiently, and out of sight.
Some people think the countries that continue to pave over lush land and rip apart ecosystems no longer seem to have a goal for the ecosystem. In the hopes of speeding up clogged traffic, congestion grows rapidly and cars continue to pollute the air outside.
As the world’s population grows and incomes rocket, it is predicted there will be 2 billion cars on the road by 2040. There are more than 64 million km of roads all over the world, and with the population increasing, total traffic levels are expected to increase by 50%, slowly but surely.
An average of 54 hours in a year of a typical American drivers’ life is wasted waiting in traffic. The more traffic there is the more carbon emissions, fuel consumption, and air and noise pollution there is.
To imagine the impact of increasing urbanization, roaring inequality, and climate crisis, one would have to ask important questions about how our world’s transportation system is developing and where we want it to go in the future.
At an event for his tunneling firm, The Boring Company, Tesla founder Elon Musk said, “Traffic is soul destroying, it’s like acid on the soul.”
