There are many good reasons to use public transport that benefit both individuals and governments. If a country has robust public transport, it means that pollution is reduced, traffic jams are cut down, and productivity is increased. That is why governments should work towards making public transport less chaotic than it currently is in most countries. The ways to do it are as follows.
Improve Infrastructure
The reason why most people opt to use their personal cars is because the place where they are going does not have good roads. In most cases, public transport is only accessible in major cities. Anything outside than that is met with poor roads that cannot be accessed by buses. The bus stops are also not very friendly for people with disabilities, so most of them prefer to use their personal vehicles.
Funding and Financing
It takes a lot of money for a company to get into public transport. That is why governments should consider chipping in and funding people who are interested in offering public transport services. These can be in the form of low-interest rates or grants. This motivates more people to venture into the public transport industry.
Make Better Legislation
The reason why public transport has been dwindling is because the legislation around public transport has not been supportive. Things would be much easier if fuel was subsidised and they did not have to go through so many punitive laws that make it look like the government is doing them a favour to allow them to operate.
Allow Collaborations
In countries where public transport has been very successful, you will notice that the private sector and the government worked together. This includes funding, working on projects like automatic cards, and employing people who work in the transport industry. Without collaboration, the government is likely to get overwhelmed by the massive work that is involved in managing the operations of public transport.
Positive Campaigns
The government should take a lead role in championing the use of public transport. It starts with government officials using public transport to show people that there is nothing shameful about using public transport. They can then go ahead to have many marketing campaigns that are meant to motivate people to use public transport. This can be in the form of advertisements in different media platforms, including social media. They can also introduce subsidised rates for passengers using public transport.