Within a Decade, Twice as Many Vehicles

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• World Car Free Day
  
  GUADALAJARA, JALISCO (22/SEP/2012.) - In 1898 the streets of Guadalajara received the first car. One hundred and fourteen years years after his arteries look saturated by passing one million 757 thousand 758 cars, a growing vehicle fleet that seems unstoppable in the absence of public policies aimed at balancing budgets and ways to get around in the city, as are projects to strengthen public transport, bikeways and pedestrian spaces.
  
  In 2002, according to the records of the Ministry of Finance, had 908 000 043 vehicles in the Guadalajara metropolitan area, by August 2012 the figure stood at one million 757 thousand 758 units, which is nearly double (93.5 %) of the vehicles in circulation for a decade.

Today, when we celebrate World Car Free Day, we must reflect on the urgency to start with concrete actions to promote the rational use of the car, otherwise, according to projections from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), in a decade will double in the Guadalajara metropolitan area the number of vehicles to exceed three million, said Mario Cordova Spain, mobility specialist.

The operation of the vehicles in the city is subsidized, said Mario Silva Rodriguez of Jalisco Ecological Collective (CEJ), as the road infrastructure and technology, and management, in this administration have required investments amounting to 37 billion dollars spent by state coffers, in contrast, tax collection and fines generated by cars is at 23 billion dollars, according to an analysis of the agency, based on information from official sources.

Mobility experts agree that we must start now with measures to encourage the tapatíos getting off the car and get in response a more rational use of the vehicle. It is essential to improving public transport quality, safety, improving the origins and destinations, strengthening the backbone of mass transport and integration with conventional. It will also be necessary to apply taxes and restrictions on car use, say experts.

Achieving a change of self reliance particular requires as an essential ingredient of political, plans in the short, medium and long-term changes is not getting in the overnight. Projects are up to 20 or 30 years, but it must start immediately with the resources available, according to experts consulted.

[readon1 url="http://www.informador.com.mx/primera/2012/406223/6/en-una-decada-el-doble-de-vehiculos.htm"]Source: www.informador.com.mx - Translation by Suyapa Ajuria[/readon1]