19 September 2010
MUSCAT: September 22 is World Car Free Day. Are Oman residents ready to take on the challenge and leave their vehicles home for this one day?
In countries that observe the day, commuters choose an alternative way of travelling to work on this particular day. Popular in countries such as US and Japan, the concept encourages people to walk, bicycle, use public transport and other forms of sustainable transportation.
According to advocates of the event, "As the climate heats up, World Car Free Day is the perfect time to take the heat off the planet, and get city planners and politicians to give priority to this concept."
The idea first germinated in Spain in the year 1994 and since then it has grown in popularity. Since September 22, 2000 it has been a regular event all over the world.
Now, over 100 million people in 1,500 cities observe the day using a more environment friendly way to get to their destination.
Public transport
But the question is if the event can be observed in Oman where people seem so dependent on cars. Considering that access to public transportation is not easy and the weather condition doesn't suit those who want to walk, it may not be as easy. But then it is fact that most families own more than two cars in Oman.
Malik Al Hinai, director, Bait Al Baranda thinks it will be a very tough act to follow this trend in Oman even if it is for one day.
"I don't think it will work here. The weather conditions and the not so active public transportation system will not permit us to observe such a day," he says.
He explains that in countries like US and Japan there are pavements and shaded avenues for those wanting to walk to work.
"It is unthinkable here," he says. But he adds that car pooling would be an idea worth considering. "The ratio of car ownership would be nearly one adult per car. In that sense on this particular day families could decide to use one car to go to work, provided of course their work timings match," he says.
He also reminds that in the past ministries would provide transportation facility for its employees. "May be they can go back to those days," he points out.
"Even private companies can arrange for their employees to be picked," he adds.
While Hinai agrees that it is great opportunity for people to do their bit for their environment the terrain of Oman won't make it easy. "Car pooling is something people can consider on this particular day, but walking is surely not possible when the weather is hot," he says.
Bashaar Zaitoon of Environment Society of Oman too agrees with Hinai. "Oman does not have the infrastructure with adequate public transport that would effectively allow people to observe World Car Free Day. Public transport routes are still very limited and do not service all areas," he says.
Julie Amman, press manager, Nawras has a slightly different take on the matter. "We are fortunate to live in the Sultanate of Oman with its stunning scenery of mountains, beaches and wadis and we all have a responsibility to do what we can to protect our environment," she says.
But she notes, "While it might not be feasible for us to leave the car at home, we can certainly think about the journeys we are taking and consider car pooling or making one trip instead of two whenever possible.
In the cooler weather, shorter car trips could be replaced by a healthy walk which would benefit us personally as well as being more environmentally friendly. If everyone makes a little effort it would add up to something substantial overall with the end results enjoyed by everyone."
But all of them agree that if planned well ahead it wouldn't be tough to observe the Car Free Day. "Residents can certainly think of going to work in their friend's or families' car. We could even shift the Car Free Day in Oman to sometime in December when weather is pleasant and nice to walk," they say.
This discussion, of course, does raise the pertinent issue of bettering public transportation system.
Oman residents are very keen on supporting environmental issues.
In the last few years the call to observe Earth Hour has received very enthusiastic response from residents. So this concept might only catch up in the years to come.
MUSCAT: September 22 is World Car Free Day. Are Oman residents ready to take on the challenge and leave their vehicles home for this one day?
In countries that observe the day, commuters choose an alternative way of travelling to work on this particular day. Popular in countries such as US and Japan, the concept encourages people to walk, bicycle, use public transport and other forms of sustainable transportation.
According to advocates of the event, "As the climate heats up, World Car Free Day is the perfect time to take the heat off the planet, and get city planners and politicians to give priority to this concept."
The idea first germinated in Spain in the year 1994 and since then it has grown in popularity. Since September 22, 2000 it has been a regular event all over the world.
Now, over 100 million people in 1,500 cities observe the day using a more environment friendly way to get to their destination.
Public transport
But the question is if the event can be observed in Oman where people seem so dependent on cars. Considering that access to public transportation is not easy and the weather condition doesn't suit those who want to walk, it may not be as easy. But then it is fact that most families own more than two cars in Oman.
Malik Al Hinai, director, Bait Al Baranda thinks it will be a very tough act to follow this trend in Oman even if it is for one day.
"I don't think it will work here. The weather conditions and the not so active public transportation system will not permit us to observe such a day," he says.
He explains that in countries like US and Japan there are pavements and shaded avenues for those wanting to walk to work.
"It is unthinkable here," he says. But he adds that car pooling would be an idea worth considering. "The ratio of car ownership would be nearly one adult per car. In that sense on this particular day families could decide to use one car to go to work, provided of course their work timings match," he says.
He also reminds that in the past ministries would provide transportation facility for its employees. "May be they can go back to those days," he points out.
"Even private companies can arrange for their employees to be picked," he adds.
While Hinai agrees that it is great opportunity for people to do their bit for their environment the terrain of Oman won't make it easy. "Car pooling is something people can consider on this particular day, but walking is surely not possible when the weather is hot," he says.
Bashaar Zaitoon of Environment Society of Oman too agrees with Hinai. "Oman does not have the infrastructure with adequate public transport that would effectively allow people to observe World Car Free Day. Public transport routes are still very limited and do not service all areas," he says.
Julie Amman, press manager, Nawras has a slightly different take on the matter. "We are fortunate to live in the Sultanate of Oman with its stunning scenery of mountains, beaches and wadis and we all have a responsibility to do what we can to protect our environment," she says.
But she notes, "While it might not be feasible for us to leave the car at home, we can certainly think about the journeys we are taking and consider car pooling or making one trip instead of two whenever possible.
In the cooler weather, shorter car trips could be replaced by a healthy walk which would benefit us personally as well as being more environmentally friendly. If everyone makes a little effort it would add up to something substantial overall with the end results enjoyed by everyone."
But all of them agree that if planned well ahead it wouldn't be tough to observe the Car Free Day. "Residents can certainly think of going to work in their friend's or families' car. We could even shift the Car Free Day in Oman to sometime in December when weather is pleasant and nice to walk," they say.
This discussion, of course, does raise the pertinent issue of bettering public transportation system.
Oman residents are very keen on supporting environmental issues.
In the last few years the call to observe Earth Hour has received very enthusiastic response from residents. So this concept might only catch up in the years to come.
By Mrudu Naik
© Times of Oman 2010
