Task 2 tối 12/05/2017 - Hà Nội - traffic congestion

Question

Some people believe government should spend money on building train and subway lines to reduce traffic congestion. Others think that building more and wider roads is the better way to reduce traffic congestion.

Discuss both views and give your opinion.

Opinions diverge on how to address traffic jam. Although it is highly suggested that building more roads and adding new lanes is an effective solution, I would argue that government should allocate their financial resources for construction of railroad and underway. Both sides will be under discussion within the scope of this writing.

On the one hand, I understand why some people think that having more wide roads could tackle the congested traffic phenomenon. This problem is attributable to density of vehicles exceeding the capacity of current system. Thus, increasing the quantity and the size of roads can allow a higher volume of vehicles to circulate more smoothly. As a result, it can partly solve the issue of traffic jam; however, it is only a temporary solution. The people are unlikely to resort to public transports since using their own car which is much more convenient. Consequently, the number of means of transportation could rise significantly, which continually leads to overloading traffic situation.

On the other hand, I would side with those who reckon that the option of railway and underway construction is more effective than improving the road expansion. First, public transports can generally alleviate the overcrowding roads and streets, especially in peak hours, because they are able to carry hundreds of passengers at the same time. Second, using train and subway can help economize parking surface, which is one of the major reasons for traffic congestion. To take a typical illustration, in Vietnam, there are a large range of roadsides are occupied for car and motorbike parks. As a domino effect, the pedestrians have to walk on roadway that causes far more seriously congested traffic. Therefore, building and improving public transportation system, although pricy and time-consuming, should be an obviously permanent solution.

In conclusion, it appears to me that the governmental funds should go to the railroad and subway tracks construction, while it is difficult to deny the provisional benefit brought by the expansion of road system.

(329 words)

Answer 1

Opinions diverge on how to address traffic jam. Although it is highly suggested that building more roads and adding new lanes are an effective solution, I would argue that government should allocate their financial resources for to the construction of railroad and subway. Both sides will be under discussion within the scope of this writing.

On the one hand, I understand why some people think that having more wider roads could tackle the congested traffic phenomenon. This problem is attributable to the density of vehicles exceeding the capacity of the current system. Thus, increasing the quantity and the size of roads can allow a higher volume of vehicles to circulate more smoothly. As a result, it can partly solve the issue of traffic jam; however, it is only a temporary solution. The people are unlikely to resort to public transports since using their own car which is much more convenient. Consequently, the number of means of transportation could rise significantly, which continually leads to overloaded traffic situation.

On the other hand, I would side with those who reckon that the option of railway and subway construction is more effective than improving the road expansion. First, public transports modes can generally alleviate the overcrowded roads and streets, especially in peak hours, because they are able to carry hundreds of passengers at the same time. Second, using train and subway can help economize save parking surface, which is one of the major reasons for traffic congestion. To take a typical illustration, in Vietnam, there are a large range of roadsides are occupied for car and motorbike parks. As a domino effect, the pedestrians have to walk on roadway, which that causes far more seriously congested traffic. Therefore, building and improving public transportation system, although pricy and time-consuming, should obviously be a permanent solution.

In conclusion, it appears to me that the governmental funds should go to the railroad and subway tracks construction, while it is difficult to deny the provisional benefit brought by the expansion of road system.