People think that the government should increase the cost of fuel for cars and other vehicles to solve environmental problems. Give your opinion.

It is widely believed that one solution to deal with the environmental issues is to raise petrol prices. I consider that this would be a useful measure, but I would argue that other measures have a more positive effect.

If the national government raised taxes on petrol, this would address two major environmental problems. Firstly, in terms of private vehicles, motorists would limit the number of their journeys.Governments then must upgrade and expand public transport provision, since people still need to travel to work and hospitals. Secondly, from the perspective of freight services, goods need to be travelled by rail rather than by truck. Both these measures would cut down on emissions and reduce greenhouse effects.

On the other hand, this rise in fuel prices might be a useful stopgap measure, other measures could be adopted which would be more effective in the long term. The authority in London, for instance, introduced congestion charge on all vistings from vehicles into the city centre. The money raised would be used to subsidize the cost of fares and invest in transport infrastructure. Therefore, the air quality has improved significantly, as a result of the reduction of exhaust fumes. Another policy would be to implement free bus and train passes as a way to reduce the use of public transport. This solution would reduce pollution from private cars and help combat global warming.

In conclusion, although a massive rise in petrol prices would be an effective short term measure , other measures could be more useful in the long run.