If countries are serious about solving traffic problems, they should tax private cars very heavily and use the money to provide free or very cheap rail travel. To what extent do you agree with the above?

Traffic congestion in many cities around the world us severe. Some people suggest that the government should impose heavy-duty on private vehicle owners and spend the money to provide free charge or less than standards price for transportation. From my perspective, I personally agree with this point for many reasons, described in the following paragraphs. One the one hand, heavy taxes on private vehicles will discourage most people from buying cars. This will also help in reducing pollution to a great extent, as there will be less emission of harmful gases. Also, the levy money collected from this measure can be used to improve public transport. For example, the government can use it to build better roads and well-equipped bus stations and railway stations. This will also boost infrastructural development in the country. On the flip side, any such decision to increase tax on private vehicles will put people at a disadvantage. Not everybody resides in areas where they have easy access to public transport. For instance, in most countries farmers own land far from the city. They need their own vehicle to get to the nearest bus station or train station. Another issue is that if people stop buying cars to avoid taxes it will have an adverse impact on car manufacturers. This will lead to an acute drop in sales and profit and employees will not be paid appropriately. Eventually, this will cause unemployment and hamper the economic growth of the country in the long run. In conclusion, the decision to impose tax on private vehicles has merits and demerits. It might reduce pollution but at the same time it will cause a great deal of inconvenience to people. Before implementing this decision, the government should consider all the possible consequences.