A Common Tragedy, The Tragedy of the Commons

The other day I was checking the news on the BBC website. While I was looking at the leading stories of the day, I came across a story about the worst traffic jams in the world (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-19716687). The article noted several cities around the world to have some of the worst traffic jams. These cities ranged from Jakarta in Indonesia to Kampala in Uganda. Upon reading these accounts of congestion, I was reminded of Hardin’s concept of the “tragedy of the commons.” In other words, I came to realize that this article on congestion was a perfect example of a resource on our planet that is used by many, yet not owned by anyone.

Hardin’s paper “The Tragedy of the Commons” documents the drastic and startling truth about common resources. The paper spells out the tragedy as “the results that come about when a single resource is owned and accessed by everyone, and regulated by no one. Without some type of self-policing, this resource will disappear.” Although it might not seem apparent, the congestion that is found in major cities around the world is a result of the “tragedy of the commons.” The interstates and highways in most, if not all, of these countries is a public good that can be used by anyone with a car. That is, anyone who possesses a vehicle is able to drive onto these transportation systems and travel about. As a result of this fact, these transportation systems get overused. This is not always the case. There are times where the number of automobiles on the interstate system does not have drastic effects on people’s travel times. But as more and more vehicles enter these transportation systems, there is less room for people to move about. With less space for all of the cars on the road, the velocities of the cars will decrease. This increase in the number of vehicles on highways and interstates causes the travel times of vehicles to slow down, which in turn causes congestion.

Space on highway systems can be obtained by anyone with a vehicle. In other words, as stated before, anyone with a car can drive onto these transportation systems. No one really owns the space on the highway systems, so as a result of it being owned by no one yet used by many, the space on highway systems is a resource that gets overused and exploited. But one might ask are there any solutions to this problem? One solution that people propose is for individuals to carpool to work. Advocates to this solution believe that more people should travel to work together. They should carpool because it seems as if there are many cars on the road that are occupied by only one person. If more people began to carpool, then one can argue there will be fewer cars on the road. Another solution that some individuals propose is to stop using automobiles to get around a city. Advocates of this proposition believe it would be in the best interest of everyone to use other modes of transportation. People should either ride their bicycles to work, ride the local commuter rail line, use buses to travel around, or just walk.

            Personally, I believe that the solution about people finding other means of transit is the better solution to the problem. Not only will it fix the “tragedy of the commons” with space on the highways, but it will also lessen other issues. This solution will diminish the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere as well as reduce our dependence on oil. Even though I think this is the better solution, I don’t think it is the solution that will work right away, especially not in the United States. Sadly, most Americans have a strong connection with automotive transit. Due to this fact, it seems to me that it will be a difficult task for Americans to transition to other means of transit. With that said, I think the solution that will work for now would be the proposition for individuals to start carpooling. Hopefully, once people begin to carpool, they will gradually transition to other means of transportation.