Land use is an important aspect to be studied and carefully considered in any attempt to reduce the emission of Green House Gases (GHG). This topic becomes even more prominent in places like Hawaii where overpopulation is a great concern since it turns land into a fairly scarce resource.
Citizens are to pay increased fees for occupying public spaces. In the context of ground transportation, vehicle owners have no other option rather than disbursing more to everything running out of fossil - and renewable - fuel engines to sharply reduce GHG local emissions. At the same time, drivers should be eligible to receive fiscal incentives for promoting ridesharing and using alternative means of transportation.
Technology is an essential tool to help drastically reduce the number of vehicles on streets. As local governments create online systems through which drivers and riders can connect and transfer mileages, taxpayers can easily communicate to find creative ways to share private spaces.
Vauban, in Germany, has dramatically increased the prices of public - and private - parking. The Green Party coalition decided that the ones who opted for driving rather than taking convenient, comfortable, and reliable public transportation must pay for occupying public space for private purposes. This decision has proven to be environmentally effective since GHG-free vehicles do not address the issue of land overuse and traffic congestion as well as contribute to the economy of mass production and consumption; therefore, increasing overall emission of pollutants.
In addition to taxes, the combination of incentives and technology generates less GHG emissions precisely because it reduces the number of private cars in public areas. A comprehensive system of smart pick-up and drop-off meters, for example, combined with online database and tax refund systems may encourage car owners to share private spaces with others.
Positive consequences of these measures are various: i) promote ridesharing ii) create incentives through tax refunds iii) indirectly force drivers to replace cars with public transportation iv) increase the number of people advocating for the improvement of green transportation and road safety and v) increase public surpluses for investments on new practices and technologies.
More ideas:
http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hrd/pubs/congestion.pdf
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