More and more people in developing countries are purchasing cars for the first time. What problems does this cause? What do you think are some possible solutions?

An increasing number of

people

from developing nations are making their

first

car a purchases. The principle

problem

this

causes is traffic congestion and the most viable solution is better public transport. The primary dilemma developing countries face when their citizens start to buy cars is travel jams.

This

is because

people

’s wealth has grown faster than the infrastructure and

this

means that

roads

that were built for bikes or a limited number of cars are suddenly clogged with a line of vehicles during peak times. The result of

this

is

people

getting stuck in traffic for a prolonged period of time during rush hour.

For example

, most

roads

in Ho Chi Minh City were built to carry bikes only, but now there are up to 5,000 new cars added to the streets a month and it now takes up to half an hour to travel one kilometre within the city centre. A solution to the

problem

of overcrowding on the

roads

is to build a sustainable public a transport system.

This

could solve the

problem

by taking most

people

off the

roads

and onto either an underground train or a train that runs above the road. As traffic problems increase, most

people

will become frustrated and decide to either sell their car or only use it when absolutely necessary.

For instance

,

This

is why Ho Chi Minh City is currently building their

first

metro line and sky train, similar to Bangkok’s, and these are projected to reduce journey times by up to 50% when they are completed. In conclusion, the main

problem

with the rise in the number of motor vehicles in developing countries is the clogging of the

roads

, but

this

can be addressed through modern public-transport infrastructure.