A NOVEL idea could see Mallorcan motorways have dedicated bus lanes running through the middle of them. Gone would be the typical green shrubbery dividing opposite lanes. Rather they woud become special bus lanes to help ease traffic flow.
The idea is to make public transport even quicker than private transport. In an ideal world this would encourage people to ditch their cars and travel collectively, easing pollution on the island.
Express bus lanes are in operation in dozens of cities across the world, such as Istanbul which has more cars than Madrid has people.
The Balearic government is hoping to raise the relative share of public transport to 25 per cent of all transport across the islands by 2028. Currently around 13 per cent of trips are taken collectively.
A first step in the project could see bus lanes introduced from the airport on the motorway route to Peguera. Another proposal is that cars carrying three or more passengers could also use the dedicated lanes.
The plan is not, however, without its detractors. One commentator noted the irony of trying to improve the environment by replacing miles of green shrubbery with bus lanes.
