Private cars or public transport, which is better? This is a common ongoing debate. The answer to this question depends on the mindset of the person. While some thinks that the main reason of traffic jams are the private cars and some commuters think that public transport is not a better alternative for commuting. Hence, different people have different opinions and reactions when asked whether they would prefer their own cars or use mass transit.

A majority of the people, mostly of the upper class, thinks that private cars is a better choice when it comes to transportation and this is why these days the number of people who use their own cars for commuting is increasing rapidly. This contributes to the high levels of pollution in the city.

People who are constantly on the go or do not have a lot of time find traveling by private cars a better choice and have good reasons to support their choice as well. Firstly, they think that as far as public transit is involved, a lot of their precious time is wasted by waiting for a bus or train to arrive; hence the speed factor is crucial for them. According to them, they can directly arrive at their destination without having to stop on the way to pick other passengers, which is the case in public transit.

Another reason why people do not prefer to use public transportation is because they do not like to share space with strangers or because they don’t like to stand in the bus or train. With their own cars or even cabs, a seat is always guaranteed. Let’s take the example of buses, during rush hours it is highly difficult to find an empty seat and usually one is left grasping the hand bar or the seat in order to save one from being flung when the brakes are applied. This is highly uncomfortable and it is not very easy to maintain one’s balance in a crammed bus.

Let us now discuss the advantages of public transport. Of course this is a cheaper and a more cost effective way of commuting; don’t believe it? Just ask any person who uses their private cars for commuting on a regular basis about the amount of money they spend every month on the maintenance of the car and the expenditure on fuel. While there are special reserved lanes for public transit, which means that public transport can be faster than private cars.

The next factor is the environment factor, as far as it is concerned, even an elementary school kid knows that one should always walk for shorter distances and use buses and public transport instead of private cars. Imagine a situation where all the people in a bus had used their own cars instead, that would be equivalent to seventy cars producing toxic fumes and polluting the environment instead of just one bus! However, these days “green” buses have been introduced which do not produce pollutants and are more compatible with the environment.