Road space rationing
Also called: Odd-even scheme, Vehicle rationing · Topic: Environment and Sustainable Development · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 7 "Environment and Sustainable Development"
Meaning
Road space rationing limits which vehicles may use the roads on a given day. The aim is to cut traffic and the air pollution it causes. It rations road use directly, without any tax or price on driving.
Example
Delhi first tried its odd-even scheme in January 2016. Cars with odd-numbered registration plates could drive on some days and cars with even-numbered plates on the other days, for fixed periods. This roughly halved the number of private cars on the road on any day.
Don't confuse with
- Pigouvian tax on pollution: a charge equal to the damage caused, such as a green tax on old vehicles. The polluter pays, but the choice to drive is left to them. Odd-even bans half the cars outright on any given day.
Related concepts
- Non-conventional sources of energy
- Wind power
- Solar photovoltaic power
- Mini-hydel plants
- LPG as clean fuel
- Biogas
- Compressed Natural Gas
- Energy poverty