M3.5 Transportation

-
   The Bay Area has many methods of public transportation. AC transit, the BART train, Muni, and other modes of transportation such as ride-sharing with Lyft and Uber are readily available and useful, especially for people who do not have the privilege of owning a vehicle. It is super easy to get around, I take BART and AC transit every day to get to work or where ever I need to go. Bike lanes are also fairly common here in the Bay, but I have noticed that they are less available in lower income communities which I have observed often experience high vehicle occupancy on the roads. Promoting safe walking and biking among lower income neighborhoods would be a great benefit along with the creation of more bike lanes in areas where there aren't any. This can provide a healthier alternative to get around for many people living in these areas.
   Improving the environmental conditions of  low income communities is definitely something that needs to be worked on especially when it comes to vehicle emissions. The fact that lower income communities are more likely to live by freeways and be exposed to vehicle exhaust is such a serious issue. This again goes hand in hand with environmental justice in addressing the differences in contamination and health conditions between lower income communities and wealthier communities.
   In reducing the amount of vehicle contamination in the air, AC transit has worked to reduce their carbon footprint and to reduce toxic emissions produced by its buses. They now promote zero emissions and use hydrogen fuel cells as well as hybrid electric buses to lessen their impact on the environment. They are also working on using solar energy to power their buses. I think this is a great start and hope that in the future all buses will be emission free and rely on alternative energy sources. AC transit is an excellent role model for the movement towards zero emission public transportation.



Here is more information about AC transit's plans on becoming emission free: http://www.actransit.org/environment/

Comments

  1. AnonymousSeptember 29, 2018 at 4:01 PM

    AC transit sounds really interesting. I’ll be interested to look into it. As far as your comments regarding lower income communities, I couldn’t agree more. Bike lanes seem to be limited to more affluent neighborhoods in the Bay Area, while the poorer regions are often crammed in around freeways and other areas with high vehicular traffic. Driving through and around Oakland and Berkeley always highlights this issue, I feel, where the distinctions between “nice” and “bad” neighborhoods is as stark as the roadways that divide them.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sintia ShahbazNovember 5, 2018 at 6:34 PM

    I really look up to the public transportation in the Bay Area! You are lucky to have so many options. Where I live there is absolutely nothing! There is few bus stops in my town, but the bus does not come for every few hours. It would be really nice to eliminate pollution this way!!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

M10.2 Blog about MSDS and ToxNet

-
Unfortunately, while interviewing my mother on the hazards of the workplace environment internally and externally, she admitted that her school didn't have Material Safety Data Sheets. When she was hired, she never recalled getting any paperwork or meeting on the potential hazards of the workplace. When she asked the principal, her boss, about whether they had one, he had no idea what she was talking about. My mom basically said that her school is too poor to have an MSDS and the OUSD doesn't bother to spend money on developing such a thing. As for my workplace, they also seemed to be at a loss for what an MSDS was. When I was hired, the only talk of safety hazards were outside the office. We had discuss the importance of protecting ourselves against used syringes on the ground, keeping our hands clean, and getting vaccinated to protect ourselves and our homeless clients from exposure. Other than that, my boss and supervisor didn't really say much else about it. If we hap...
Read more

M1.5 Blog Assignment: Environmental Health Home Assessment

-
Image
The San Leandro Dollhouse My home is located in San Leandro, California. The home, or as I like to call given its size, the dollhouse was built after 1978 with no known lead contamination. It is a small two bedroom, two bathroom small house with a small kitchen and living room. There is a small gated yard and garden where I plant flowers and grow my own tomatoes. The house is located behind another home and hidden from the road. My home has good air ventilation in the bathrooms and plenty of windows. When we first moved in the beginning of last year, we did experience a bit of a mold problem in one of the bedrooms. The winter/rainy months increased the likelihood of mold and often when we did not use the heater. A humidifier was provided by the landlord to clear the moisture in the air. We have not had a mold problem since then. We have a gas stove and gas wall heater that we turn off when not in use. However, I often realize that this is not always the case. In terms of disast...
Read more

M10.8 Blog about an occupationally-related disease

-
Image
For my disease selection, I chose Byssinosis or "Brown Lung". This is the first time that I heard of this illness, usually we hear more about black lung and white lung in my opinion. According to the American Lung Association, Byssinosis affects people who work in the hemp, cotton, and flax industry. Workers usually develop Byssinosis by inhaling raw cotton, hemp, flax or other textile dust. It causes asthma-like symptoms and can lead to chronic obstructive lung disease. OSHA recognizes cotton dust as a respiratory hazard and the importance of monitoring exposure and the development of Byssinosis. OSHA has several manuals detailing regulations and procedures on recognizing and handling cotton dust exposure. OSHA has also enforced standards of safety in textile mills and inspection protocols to monitor cotton dust safety. In defining exposure to cotton or textile particles, OSHA stated the following, "Cotton dust means dust present in the air during the handling or p...
Read more