. 24/7 Space News .
CAR TECH
Cyclists brave Lahore smog to convince drivers to ditch their cars
By Kaneez FATIMA
Lahore, Pakistan (AFP) Dec 26, 2022

Cyclists in Pakistan's smog-smothered Lahore are enduring hazardous pollution levels, abuse from drivers and social stigma in a campaign to get people to ditch their cars.

Each week around 100 adults and children, some wearing masks or scarves wrapped around their mouths and noses, jump on their bikes to cycle around landmarks in the city of more than 11 million people.

"The smog is a huge concern for us because there are so many cars now and the population has increased so much," said Afia Khan, who joined the initiative in August.

But it is an uphill challenge encouraging people to take up the environmentally friendly mode of transport, and the group often require a police escort to keep them safe in a city that lacks dedicated bicycle lanes.

Cyclists are "at the mercy of these ruthless motorbikes, chingchies (auto rickshaws) and cars" that have not embraced the idea of sharing the roads with cyclists, said Rana Sohail, the head of Clean Pakistan Green Pakistan, which launched the venture with Critical Mass Lahore.

"The government needs to create a more cycling-friendly infrastructure," participant Humayun Qureshi told AFP at the latest event on Sunday, which he attended with his wife and two daughters.

There is also a pervasive attitude in deeply conservative Pakistan that sport, including cycling, is inappropriate for women, who risk harassment from men.

"Going biking alone as a woman can be difficult because of the harassment you're going to face," Zarwa Jamal, a student who was cycling with her whole family, told AFP.

"It's truly great to be able to go with the group because I'm ensured of my safety."

Lahore consistently ranks as one of the world's most polluted large cities, with industrial pollutants, smoke from seasonal crop burn-off, fumes from vehicles and colder winter temperatures coalescing into toxic smog.

In November a court ruling forced authorities to close schools on Fridays and Saturdays, as well as the usual Sunday break, due to high levels of air pollution.

Understanding about the terrible health impacts of smog has increased in the past few years, putting pressure on the authorities to come up with measures to tackle the problem.

"The point of reaching actual awareness is still far, but hopefully we will slowly achieve it," said cyclist Tanzeel ur Rehman.


Related Links
Car Technology at SpaceMart.com


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


CAR TECH
US probing GM's autonomous driving unit after incidents
New York (AFP) Dec 16, 2022
US authorities opened a preliminary investigation into General Motors' Cruise autonomous driving program following sudden stop incidents, according to a notice seen Friday by AFP. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is reviewing two types of incidents that result in Cruise vehicles "becoming unexpected roadway obstacles," said the notice. Cruise began offering first-in-the-nation commercial driverless taxi service to the public in part of San Francisco in June. While there ha ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

CAR TECH
Five things to watch at CES tech megashow

AI infused everything on show at CES gadget extravaganza

Russian space chief praises US after ISS coolant leak

Northrop Grumman space navigation systems achieve galactic threshold

CAR TECH
Exploration power for the Moon, Mars, and Beyond

Young ESA team prepare Ariane 6 passenger

UK space regulator issues Virgin Orbit licenses ahead of UK launch

Musk says will step down as Twitter CEO once successor found

CAR TECH
MOXIE sets consecutive personal bests and Mars records for oxygen production

NASA explores a winter wonderland on Mars

Leaving the Amapari Drill Site: Sol 3687

NASA retires InSight Mars Lander

CAR TECH
Chinese space-tracking ship sets sail for new missions

China's space sector set to rocket into future

China's space station Tiangong enters new phase of application, development

China's new space station opens for business in an increasingly competitive era of space activity

CAR TECH
Iridium introduces its latest IoT data service

US space entities examine future space technology

Voyager Space signs MoU with Canadian Space Agency

L3Harris To Acquire Aerojet Rocketdyne

CAR TECH
Ditching concrete for earth to build a cleaner future

Making the unimaginable possible in materials discovery

Waste not want not: Santiago's poorest district plants recycling seed

Elucidating the mechanism of high proton conduction to develop clean energy materials

CAR TECH
Assembly begins on NASA's next tool to study exoplanets

Kepler's first exoplanet is spiraling toward its doom

Two exoplanets may be mostly water, Hubble and Spitzer find

ESPRESSO and CARMENES discover two potentially habitable exo-Earths around a star near the Sun

CAR TECH
Juno spacecraft recovering memory after 47th Flyby of Jupiter

Four decade study finds mysterious patterns in temperatures at Jupiter

Comet impacts could bring ingredients for life to Europa's ocean

Juno exploring Jovian moons during extended mission









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.