Environmentalist in countries such as Iraq, Egypt and Lebanon joined 350.org’s ‘Moving Planet’ campaign to celebrate and support greener forms of transport The stifling heat of the Middle East may be one reason why people prefer to take the car rather than walk or cycle but that doesn’t mean that they don’t support the creation […]
Shop till you “drop” at the Jerusalem bus station. Working in a congested bus station, especially one like Jerusalem’s Central Bus Station is not conducive to one’s health. The toxic fumes created by the hundreds of buses that go in and out of this station, and all the free radicals in this air pollution is […]
How can eco-friendly transportation be improved in the suburbs? When contemplating whether to live in a city or in the suburbs, most people weigh the pros and cons of having more space or less space, being closer to better schools for their kids or having the convenience of everything nearby in an urban environment. But […]
Green Prophet’s Arwa on her decision not to drive a car and the social stigma that comes with it… Maybe it has something to do with my love of trains and car-induced travel sickness as a child, but I can honestly say I’ve never aspired to driving a car. Hitting the open road or whizzing […]
Around 2,500 took part in the car-free day – aiming to encourage the use of public transport Empty car parks and full Metros and buses is not a sight you’re likely to see very often in the Dubai but for one day it became reality. On Wednesday, around 2,500 employees decided to leave their cars […]
Masdar - the Eco-city - is home to the hottest and most energy efficient transport system in the world: The Personal Rapid Transit (pod car). The PRT is fast, powered by lithium batteries, driverless, can carry up to 10 people safely and looks oh so beautiful in the gleaming sun... Check out more here.
To unclog Amman’s road arteries, the municipality hopes to bring its state-of-the-art public buses online by next year. While it’s neighbor brings Better Place electric cars online, a move that may reduce emissions but not congestion, Jordan is instead pursuing a state of the art BRT system for its capital, Amman, the site of several […]
Members at 2009 ECO Summit in Tehran Turkey is hosting the 11th summit of the Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO), which opened on Monday in Istanbul. The ECO Meeting is being held this week on 20-23 December 2010. The ECO was founded in 1985 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey, and now it has also included Asian […]
What it’s really like to explore Beirut (and especially the new Waterfront District) by bike. Lebanon – and Beirut in particular – have been making efforts recently to improve the availability of eco-friendly forms of transportation. A campaign this past summer gathered 150 cyclists in Beirut to demonstrate how easy it could be to bike […]
Middle East cities started “compact” and dense but now suffer from the same problems as the west. Tehran’s recent Smog Holidays show’s us something is wrong in Middle East cities. “Is compact urban growth good for air quality?” The research conducted by Brian Stone, Adam C. Mednick, Tracey Holloway, and Scott N. Spak in 2007 […]
A look at the air pollution in Esfahan, Iran. Cars and the clay brick industry are some of the biggest problems. The solution? Take the bus. In 2005 it was announced for the first time that the air pollution of Esfahan, the third big city of Iran, was in an emergency situation. Since then Esfahan […]
Commuter traffic and wasteful buildings are Tel Aviv’s biggest polluting culprits, according to City Architect of Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Yoav David. As one of the events surrounding the EUREKA Israel Chairmanship this week, Deputy Mayor of Tel Aviv, Asaf Zamir, and Tel Aviv City Architect Yoav David spoke to visiting European representatives about the city’s efforts […]
Will Tel Aviv’s much-needed light rail train, ever, we ask again, ever, come to light? After more than 30 years of planning, and on-off deliberations, Tel Aviv’s own light rail rail line may finally be getting off the ground – that is, if the residents of Israel’s largest city really want it to. Call it […]
Pizza Hut or Pizza “Hot” – Iranians are getting fatter. Maybe because they are ignoring public transport. The statistics show that obesity is growing among Iranian families. According to Dr. Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi, Minister of Health, only 20 percent of the Iranians do regular sport activities and about 60% of them are overweight. She also has […]
Will a simple morning truck ban solve Tel Aviv’s traffic problems, or is the problem much more complicated? Anyone driving into Tel Aviv on a Sunday morning (the first day of the Israeli work week) knows that it’s a traffic nightmare. As the main hub of central Israel, many people need to get to work […]