One advantage of cycling is
cyclists are less exposed to air pollution. A survey from Civic Exchange, ‘Hong
Kong Air Quality’ found that air pollutant concentrations are now two hundred percent
higher than the World Health Organization’s guideline in 2006. And vehicles are
the second-largest source of air pollution in Hong Kong. Therefore, people
cycling instead of driving or taking public transport would help to solve the
air pollution problem.
The second advantage of cycling
is to avoid the traffic jams. The traffic jams in Hong Kong is a grave problem
especially at the busy period. People usually spend a lot of time to wait in
traffic jams. As Hong Kong people are very busy and they even cannot waste a
minute, driving or taking public transport is neither a choice. As a result,
people cycling instead of driving or taking public transport would help to
avoid the traffic jams.
Another advantage of cycling is
to facilitate people to exercise. A survey found that cycling can burn the
kilojoules in our body. Hong Kong people are very busy. They often eat
unhealthy food and lack exercise. Cycling can help them to have better health.
And the survey has found that, if we cycling for about sixteen to eighteen
kilometres per hour, one thousand six hundred kilojoules can be burnt in our
body. Therefore, people cycling instead of driving or taking public transport
can let us have better health.
There are advantages of promoting
cycling in Hong Kong, but we should not overlook the disadvantages of it.
One disadvantage of cycling is
driving or taking public transport spends less time and brings more convenience
for us. Cycling may take time, as Hong Kong people have lots of work to do,
cycling may not be a suitable choice for them. And for most of the Hong Kong
people, cycling may be a hard exercise for them as it will consume a lot of
physical strength. Consequently, more Hong Kong people would prefer driving or
taking public transport instead of cycling.
The second disadvantage of
cycling is it may constitute a danger on the road. A survey from clear the air,
‘Quick Stats’ has found that Hong Kong has about five hundred and fifty
thousand vehicles with a total road length of only two thousand and nine
kilometres. On average, there are two hundred and seventy-five vehicles per
kilmetre on the road. It shows that Hong Kong has the highest road traffic
density in the world. And many Hong Kong people don’t have the knowledge of
cycling. As a result, more Hong Kong people would prefer driving or taking
public transport for safety.
Another disadvantage of cycling
is Hong Kong does not have enough facility to coordinate it. There are just a
few parking facilities and there are no cycle parks in Hong Kong. There are
only a few cycling lanes in the quiet roads in New Territories, and there are
some cycle tracks in the country parks. Most of the Hong Kong people have their
activities in the town but not the countryside. It is inconvenient for them to
cycle. There are also no parking facilities in the shopping mall. So cycling is
troublesome for Hong Kong people. Consequently, more Hong Kong people would
prefer driving or taking public-transport.
It can be clearly seen that there
are both advantages and disadvantages to encourage cycling instead of driving
or taking transport. On balance, however, I believe that protecting our
environment is the most important consideration. I therefore favour encouraging
to promote cycling and look forward to the day when air pollution is no longer
a grave environmental issue in Hong Kong.
Posts
