An attitude study on the environmental effects of rationing petrol in Tehran

The objective of this study is to assess the environmental effects of implementing petrol rationing and the issuance of fuel smartcards in central Tehran. The results and their application are significant from the perspective of preserving fuel sources and protecting the environment, both of which being among the goals of sustainable development. Through the analysis of soft data (owners of automobile and light pickup trucks attitude), 3 general hypotheses were assessed and the result was compared to hard data (the traffic situation information, petrol consumption and air pollution). The soft data was gathered using a comprehensive questionnaire which randomly distributed among 2000 automobile and pickup truck drivers in the central Tehran area who were at petrol stations to refuel their vehicles. The gathered data was then analyzed at two levels: descriptive and inferential. The results of this research reveal that according to the soft data, the smartcard project has resulted in a decline in traffic and petrol consumption and a rise in air pollution; furthermore, the positive cultural effects of this project have been comparatively prominent. The actual figures show that the project has led to lower traffic load and air pollution but petrol consumption remains the same as before.