Enhancing environmental conservation through guided tour buses: Insights from Taijiang National Park

High visitor numbers in protected areas can create traffic problems that impact on the environmental protection. In Taijiang National Park, a tour bus project 'Taijiang Fun Tour' was introduced to mitigate various environmental problems caused by private cars. This study evaluates the...

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Main Author: Wei-Chia Su
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) 2024-11-01
Series:Parks
Online Access:https://parksjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/We-Chia-Su_Short-communication_PARKS-30.2.pdf
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author Wei-Chia Su
author_facet Wei-Chia Su
author_sort Wei-Chia Su
collection DOAJ
description High visitor numbers in protected areas can create traffic problems that impact on the environmental protection. In Taijiang National Park, a tour bus project 'Taijiang Fun Tour' was introduced to mitigate various environmental problems caused by private cars. This study evaluates the project's environmental benefits, and those of the various bus routes in the park, in reducing CO2 emissions. The Mangrove route only achieved a CO2 reduction in 2023, likely due to post-COVID-19 tourism recovery. In contrast, the Black-faced Spoonbill route consistently showed reductions in CO2 emissions, attributed to higher per trip passenger numbers replacing more private cars, better road conditions, and longer distances between attractions, that enabled higher bus speeds and lower CO2 emissions per unit time. While it is unsurprising that CO2 reduction is significantly influenced by passenger numbers and bus speeds, the results of this study could be used by TJNP to enhance the benefits from bus use. Starting in 2024, TJNP will optimise routes and implement additional measures to encourage low-carbon transportation.
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publishDate 2024-11-01
publisher International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
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spelling doaj-art-8db4666969eb4bb4a2a15aa64ec919ec2025-08-20T01:59:04ZengInternational Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)Parks0960-233X2411-21192024-11-01302717710.2305/CDCO4840Enhancing environmental conservation through guided tour buses: Insights from Taijiang National ParkWei-Chia Su High visitor numbers in protected areas can create traffic problems that impact on the environmental protection. In Taijiang National Park, a tour bus project 'Taijiang Fun Tour' was introduced to mitigate various environmental problems caused by private cars. This study evaluates the project's environmental benefits, and those of the various bus routes in the park, in reducing CO2 emissions. The Mangrove route only achieved a CO2 reduction in 2023, likely due to post-COVID-19 tourism recovery. In contrast, the Black-faced Spoonbill route consistently showed reductions in CO2 emissions, attributed to higher per trip passenger numbers replacing more private cars, better road conditions, and longer distances between attractions, that enabled higher bus speeds and lower CO2 emissions per unit time. While it is unsurprising that CO2 reduction is significantly influenced by passenger numbers and bus speeds, the results of this study could be used by TJNP to enhance the benefits from bus use. Starting in 2024, TJNP will optimise routes and implement additional measures to encourage low-carbon transportation.https://parksjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/We-Chia-Su_Short-communication_PARKS-30.2.pdf
spellingShingle Wei-Chia Su
Enhancing environmental conservation through guided tour buses: Insights from Taijiang National Park
Parks
title Enhancing environmental conservation through guided tour buses: Insights from Taijiang National Park
title_full Enhancing environmental conservation through guided tour buses: Insights from Taijiang National Park
title_fullStr Enhancing environmental conservation through guided tour buses: Insights from Taijiang National Park
title_full_unstemmed Enhancing environmental conservation through guided tour buses: Insights from Taijiang National Park
title_short Enhancing environmental conservation through guided tour buses: Insights from Taijiang National Park
title_sort enhancing environmental conservation through guided tour buses insights from taijiang national park
url https://parksjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/We-Chia-Su_Short-communication_PARKS-30.2.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT weichiasu enhancingenvironmentalconservationthroughguidedtourbusesinsightsfromtaijiangnationalpark