Smog Over Nicosia

Driving into Nicosia from the highway I was shocked to see a pall of smog lurking over Nicosia, marring the clear blue sky's limpidity.

Once in the city, I closed my windows because the stench of car exhaust was filling my car, then was struck with a sense of guilt that I too drive a car and contribute to the overall pollution of the island's towns.

But when it comes down to it, what choice do we have? Does Nicosia have an electric tram system that could get me from A to B without spewing fumes? No. Does it have a reliable, clean and comfortable bus service? No. Does it have trains running between Limassol, Nicosia, Larnaca and Paphos? NO! Instead, we all have to rely on cars...expensive cars which cost more here than they do in Europe.

Nicosia traffic has become really congested, drivers can sit in traffic for up to 45 minutes these days, about the only good thing about that situation is that it's impossible for the boy racers to speed when there are huge lines of cars in queue.

What can we do about it? London imposed a road circulation tax on its drivers to cut down on congestion, but then again, London has a good public transport service that includes trains, buses and bicycles. Athens told its drivers that it could only drive in the city if it had the right license plates for the day, but then again, Athens has the manpower to police its roads more effectively.

So what can Nicosia do? Or Limassol for that matter? Both cities have a problem with car emissions.

It's time for some real solutions to this problem to avoid people's health and the environment from being further damaged.