Elkland, a primary metropolitan city in Alberta, is experiencing a rapid population growth. It is estimated that the city would face a population growth by an increase of 4 hundred thousand people in 2040. To satisfy the demand of increased population and improve the convenience and efficiency of the future transportation in order to create a comfortable living condition for local residents, the transportation department is planning to develop a new transportation system to replace the current one. There are three proposals provided by the department, which are increasing Public Transit Affordability& Investing in Cycling Infrastructure, Increasing Bus Service & Improving Driving Infrastructure, and Expanding LRT Service, respectively. These proposals all involves in the use of appropriate technology. "Appropriate technology is small-scale technology. It is simple enough that people can manage it directly and on a local level." Its criteria include effectiveness, safety, affordability, environmental sustainability, and being acceptable by those who are affected by it. The proposal No. 3, Expanding LRT Service offers the best proposal since, among all three options, it fulfills the most criteria of appropriate technology in terms of effectiveness, safety, affordability, environmental sustainability, and acceptability by those who are affected by it. .
In the first proposal, the plan focuses on the reducing of the expenses to in public transportation and the implement of cycling infrastructures that aims to improve the affordability and sustainability. It is low costing to pay a graduate fare of four dollars no matter where in the city the passengers will to go. However, for a short distance trip, the four-dollar fare is considered high costing while it is more convenient and less time-consuming to drive a private car. In this situation, residents who have cars would not change mode of traveling.
