Local_Environmental_Issue

A significant environmental problem in my city would be the excessive usage of gasoline. Unfortunately, in Los Angeles because of the economy people have to drive much longer distances to their jobs as people have a very hard time finding work close to home. I personally, before I was laid off two and half years ago had to drive 54 miles one-way to my job. I would be on the freeway approximately two to three hours in the morning and averaged four hours on my commute home. I had to drive alone because there was nobody I knew that worked anywhere I did. I could have taken the bus, but I would be on the bus for over four hours each way, having to transferring approximately seven times. It was not feasible to take public transportation or carpool. The amount of people that drive their own car alone to and from work is causing excessive gas usage and contributing to our very bad smog problem that in turn depletes our ozone layer so much more quickly. Much of the problems with so many cars on the road today are due to a bad economy and difficulty in finding a job. Many people have to move farther and farther from the city so they can afford to have a home to live in, yet the majority of the jobs are in the city. When it comes to public transportation, Los Angeles is trying to build underground railways like in New York, but they want to build them from the Valley to the Ocean. The need for better public transportation that is cost efficient should become a priority to begin to repair our environment.