Can We Make Cities Car-Free?
Videos
Grades9, 10, 11, 12, APCivics, Health
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Provided by City Beautiful
What it is
- This video from City Beautiful highlights the benefits of reducing car traffic in cities, with examples from a number of cities in Europe.
- In addition to the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, these cities also benefited from a reduction in air pollution and crashes with pedestrians and bicyclists.
Teaching tips
Positives
- This video gives students real-world examples of a climate solution that also benefits the people living in those communities.
- The video shows innovative ideas for transporting waste out of cities without the use of trucks.
Prerequisites
- The content ends at 6 minutes and 43 seconds, with an ad at the end.
- The video mentions that it may be more difficult to convert cities in the United States to being car-free, but it may be beneficial to discuss the reasons why in more detail.
Differentiation & Implementation
- Economics and social studies classes can discuss equitable ways of making urban areas more accessible to pedestrians and bicyclists.
- Science and health classes can use this video to make the connection between greenhouse gas pollution from vehicles and the effects of air pollution and a lack of physical activity on human health.
- This video can be tied into lessons about other climate-related topics, such as urban designs to prevent flooding, reducing the urban heat island effect, and increasing green spaces and trees in cities and nearby areas.
From the scientist review
This video spotlights the possibility of transforming cities in Europe to be car-free. For instance, the superblocks model was designed to decongest traffic in Barcelona. Other cities in Europe, like Utrecht, have also redesigned their transport model. The USA is currently lagging in terms of transforming into a car-free nation. Urban planners can borrow ideas from Europe. This resource is inspiring as it can be replicated for a car-free world. This resource is recommended for teaching.
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