Background
Sydney is served by a wide network of public transport services. According to Plan the New South Wales State, it has Australia’s largest public transport system. Sydney had the Southern Hemisphere’s largest tram network In the 1920s. Accounts of Public transport in Sydney almost double the share of commuter journeys as in other country capitals. The network is regulated by the New South Wales Ministry of Transport, which is working for an integrated network serving Sydney, Newcastle, the Central Coast, the Blue Mountains, and Wollongong.
Sydney’s particularly low population density can be traced in part to the public transport network. The city was founded in 1788 achievement of the public transport system relatively early on in its life rail services began in 1855. Working-class suburbs could thus live far from the city center, whereas in older cities the need to protect walking distance between residential and employment center’s kept spreading to a minimum. The NSW Government introduced ticketing and a standardized fare structure.
In April 2010 the NSW Government introduced My Zone, a Unified fare structure, to simplify the previously complex fares. Government-run bus, train, and ferry operators share an inter-operator Automated Fare Collection System, based on magnetic stripe technology. Since the failure of the Tcard project, the Government has recommenced the process of introducing smart card integrated ticketing to Sydney’s public transport network.
Across much of the network, fares are controlled by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal of New South Wales. Operators must show value to passengers before IPART will allow fare increases above the level of inflation. In practice, this has kept fares artificially low. Also, since the government does not provide enough extra funding, depriving the network of the investment required to improve services. The perceived need for higher fares was a key theme in the 2003 Ministerial inquiry into sustainable public transport in New South Wales.
Aims
The goal of this research was first to find out the importance of public transportation in the lives of people in Sydney and whether their use of public transport is for personal reasons or for general benefits. Personal reasons are such as avoiding traffic jams, cost, and safety. General Benefit is such as protecting the environment by reducing air pollution which is caused by car exhaust. Secondly, to investigate the average age of participants in the research who prefer to use public transportation in their daily lives more than their transport. The final aim was to discuss the advantages and disadvantages both of public and private transport.
Method
The sample
The respondents were selected from a variety of ages, gender, and kind of work. The sample size was 32. They all live in urban areas.
Data collection
The survey was carried out through the initial process of a questionnaire. The questionnaire was trialed with a sample of 20 people. After that, a questionnaire was modified and 32 respondents were finally surveyed. This comprised 12 questions and focused on the Causes and age of people why they use private transport and public transport.
Findings regarding the importance of public transportation
Most people use public transport in their daily life in Sydney. Thirty-two of the respondents use public transport, which represents 66.7%. In addition, 37.5% of them have a car. People in this research who utilize public transport use two means of public transport. The first one is a bus with 100% of the participants and 43.75% of them use the train which is the second one. Each person has a different destination. 81.25% of the participants said they use it to go to study, whereas 75% of them use it to go shopping. Moreover, 15.6% of the respondents use public transport to go to their work, while12.5% of them use it to visit or to go out with their family or friends. Those surveyed had different reasons to use public transportation. It varied between the private objectives and public interest. 75% of the participants replied that public transportation is inexpensive, whereas 31.25% answered to avoid traffic jams and parking issues. In addition, 25% of those surveyed asserted to reducing air pollution is the biggest problem in Sydney, while 18.75% of the respondents said it is safe.
Findings regarding the average age who prefer to use private transportation
People who have an average age of more than 34 prefer to use private transportation. Respondents were divided into three categories. The first age group, which is from 18 to 25, comprises 10 people. The second group contains 18 people and it is from 26 to 34. The last group consists of 20 people aged more than 34. According to the results of the survey, there is 70% of the third group use their cars in their daily lives. However, 11% of the second group always uses their private transport. The first group, which is the youngest one, depends on public transportation in their daily movements.
Findings regarding advantages and disadvantages for both public and private transport
Both public and private transportation have their pros and cons. Public transportation has many advantages mentioned by the respondents that have already been demonstrated previously. For example, public transportation is inexpensive and it reduces air pollution. However, private transportation has also many pros. 62.5% of the participants said that private transportation is more comfortable, whereas 50% of those surveyed answered that they take a shorter time if they use their cars. In addition, 43% of the respondents replied that they have more privacy in their cars than public transportation.
On the other hand, public and private transportation have many disadvantages. People in this survey talked about the negatives in both types of transport as a bad experience for them. In public transportation, 83% of those surveyed asserted that it is very dirty, while 68.75% answered train or bus does not arrive on time. Moreover, 27% of the participants said they had met dangerous people, and 20% replied bus does not stop for them. However, all respondents in this survey, who have their cars, complained of the price of petrol. They said it is very expensive, while 39% of them had got stuck in traffic jams.
Recommendations
Regarding the findings of the study, several recommendations can be made on Sydney’s transport system. For one, the method of fare collection for public transport networks should be upgraded to that of smart card integrated ticketing to minimize instances of theft while making it easier for commuters to pay. Secondly, it would be recommended that the public transport system is advanced in such a way that the vessels (buses or trains) are kept clean and comfortable to attract most people to them. This way, the problem of traffic congestion will be eased while conserving the environment for future generations. The government could intervene by enacting a body that will be responsible for the management of the public transport systems. It could also raise the parking fees on the owner to refrain people from using the private mode of transport.
Conclusion
From the discussion above, it can be concluded that transport and mostly public transport is of great essentiality to the people of Sydney. This is evidenced from the findings of the conducted survey whereby a big percentage of the population, that is 66.7% use public transport. It was also realized that buses are the most preferred mode of public transport. The preference for public transport is seen to come about due to the avoidance of issues such as traffic jams as well as parking fees. Nevertheless, it was found out that the elderly people preferred using private transport to public transport. All in all, depending on the type of transport one would prefer the important thing is to consider the pros and cones of each to you as an individual as well as the entire society. For instance, if the capacity of private cars increased, this would mean a definite increase in the levels of environmental pollution as well as congestion thus traffic jams in the town. Given the findings, it can be said that the survey was a success as the aims of the research were fully attained.