The purpose of this article is to present the problem of the impact of transport on the quality of life in a city and the practices enabling the implementation of transport processes in accordance with the principles of sustainable urban development.
The concept of sustainable development has become the result of a critical look at uncontrolled civilizational development that does not take into account the properties and laws of the natural environment. The overriding principle of sustainable development is to meet not only immediate needs but also the needs of future generations, striving to balance environmental, economic, and social systems.
The implementation of the assumptions of sustainable development is increasingly permeating every human activity. It has therefore also become a challenge for decision-makers responsible for managing modern cities.
Consequences of transport development in cities
Cities occupy 2% of the Earth’s surface and are home to almost half of the world’s population. In the EU-25, cities and suburban areas occupy about 10% of the total area and are inhabited by 80% of the population. According to the latest report The European Environment. State and outlook 2005, between 1990 and 2000, over 800,000 hectares of arable land were additionally converted into usable areas: houses, offices, shops, factories, and roads, which increased the area of urban zones on the European continent by 6%. This area is equal to three times the area of Luxembourg.
Demographers predict that the number of city dwellers will successively increase in the coming decades. According to UN data, 155,440 people move from rural areas to cities worldwide every day. In 1950, 30% of the world’s population lived in cities, and by 2003, it was already 48%. It is estimated that in 2030, 60% of the world’s population will live in cities, and by 2050, the number of city dwellers will reach 7 billion, i.e., 80% of the world’s population.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 6/2006.