Congestion

I walk the city suburbs 

 with tree lined streets

on a pleasant summers day

with a modicum of heat

a pleasant perambulation

that sort of,          has me freaked

 the hum and rumble of engines

 vibration in the air

the noise of grounded traffic 

stuck in  a       rat run

abetted by the phone app 

to bypass congestion 

I glimpse through open windows

Ongoing family life

Parents and children exposed

To pollutions rising tides

I smell the slightly acrid stench

pumping from exhausts

 nothing very potent and nowt

to see of course 

If I had an infra red camera I could show

the world a sight of danger

would they want to know

 Cars with flaming  tails 

that pinpoint  deadly fumes

and show how they move and spiral

into those innocent living rooms

 

I read in the paper

lockable bollards might do the trick

so residential streets become closed

and only residents get a fix

it seems the stuff of nightmares

to lock the suburbs down

Is this our best solution

To traffics constant merry go round?