Development of private transport
Cars and motorcycles became popular in the 1920s and 1930s when mass-production in factories made them cheaper to buy. Ever since then, sales of private vehicles have increased at higher rates than the numbers of people using public transport.
Like buses, early cars were powered by steam, gas, petrol and sometimes electricity. By the 1920s, all cars had petrol engines and this remained so until the 1980s when diesel engines became more popular.
Take a look at some of these images, each one has a different method of propulsion.
Which one would be most environmentally friendly? Which do you think is the most efficient and why?
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This is a Sunbeam Talbot Alpine sports car, made between 1959 and 1968. It has an engine that burns petrol containing poisonous lead to power it. |
| This is as Vespa scooter from the 1970s. It has a small engine that burns petrol containing lead to power it. Scooters became popular after the Second World War during petrol rationing because they were so economical. |  |
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This is a Peugeot electric car having its batteries charged. It was part of a trial run in Coventry in 1996 to see if electric cars and vans would be a practical solution to pollution in towns. |
| This is a Toyota 'hybrid' car, sold from 1997. It uses a battery for power at low speeds and a small unleaded petrol engine for faster motoring. The petrol engine charges the battery when it is in use. |  |
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This is a Mercedes-Benz car, launched in 1997. It could be purchased with an unleaded petrol or diesel engine. |
Different types of road transport use have a different impact on the environment
- The rise in road transport use
- The regularity of journeys: are they always necessary?
- Fuel types: does it make a difference what fuel you use in the car or in a bus?
- Sharing transport: Is it better for people to travel in the same vehicle rather lots of different ones?
- People's rights and responsibilities regarding traffic, vehicles and transport
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