Accelerating smoothly and turning off your car's air conditioning could help
to save the environment, according to a government report published today.
The Commission for Integrated Transport (CfIT) outlined a set of
recommendations which propose that driving techniques can be as important as
the carbon dioxide emission of cars themselves.
One of the commission’s proposals is for drivers to have state-sponsored
lessons in “eco-driving”, suggesting that practices such as accelerating
evenly, not braking sharply and not over using air conditioning should be
incorporated into the driving test.
The report also recommends that the government should seek to promote greater
adherence to the 70mph speed limit on the roads. The CfIT said 56 per cent
of drivers exceed the 70mph limit on motorways, with 19 per cent of them
going at speeds of more than 80mph. Such enforcement, they suggested, could
save around one million tonnes of carbon (MtC) a year.
Other proposals within the report could see motorists face significant petrol
price rises.
A "steady increase in fuel price is essential to help control CO2
emissions", the CfIT said in the report today. “The price of fuel can
be a "significant and visible element of overall costs of road transport".
The commission said the new climate change committee proposed by the
Government should advise the Government on where and by how much fuel duty
may need to increase.
Times
Transport correspondent Ben Webster gets a lesson in smooth driving
Other techniques for reducing your environmental impact
The commute
If you work within 2km (slightly less than 1¼ miles) of your home, try getting
up earlier and walking or cycling to the office. If you have a longer
commute, take the bus, Underground or train.
The following table to shows weekly carbon savings if you switch from driving
to alternative modes of transport. Multiply the CO figure for travel by
train, bus or Underground by the number of kilometres travelled each month.
Then calculate your savings by deducting this figure from the total you
would have incurred if you had driven.
Car emissions during rush hour are much higher than the daily average —
339g/km rather than 180g/km for an average-size petrol car.
The carbon commute — CO² emissions*
By car - 339g for 1km
By diesel train — 98g for 1km
By Underground — 65g for 1km
By single-decker bus — 66g for 1km
By foot/bicycle — 0g for 1km
* emissions during peak commuting hours
If you’re not sure how long your journey is and you live in London, visit www.walkit.com
which will work out the distance for you. Outside the capital, use the AA’s
website at www.theaa.com/travelwatch/planner_
main.jsp to get distances between destinations nationwide.
Here are some sample savings if you leave your car in the garage:
Carbon savings per year
For a daily 12km round-trip commute: train = 51kg, bus = 57kg; Tube = 58kg
For a 4km round-trip walk to work: 24kg
For a 12km daily round trip by bicycle: 71kg
Want to know more?
www.transport2000.org.uk
www.eta.co.uk
Top 5 carbon-light petrol cars
Toyota Prius — 104g/km
Honda Civic Hybrid — 109g/km
Citroën C — 109g/km
Toyota Aygo — 109g/km
Peugot 107 — 109g/km
Download and print-out these pdfs: Low
Carbon Diet monthly planner | Your
carbon weight calculator
Just more eco green hippy flower power moron spoon feeding rubbish. People seem to forget Human Civilisation is a tiny spec of insignificance in terms of the bigger picture. The Earth is in control, not us. We cant kill it, but it can kill us. The Temperature goes up and down in cycles and has done for billions of years without consulting us first. So why should it be any different now? Apart from for Governments to make money that is.
Me personally, i just drive normally. If im only going to the shops which in my case is 40 yards away, for a pint of milk, i walk. If i drove there i'd accept criticism for lazyness, but i dont. Not out of "saving the planet" (which doesnt need saving, planet will do what it wants) but cos i see it as a waste and pointless.
As for higher fuel prices. Since when did lining the PM's pockets help any real issue? Fuel price has gone up plenty thank you, and look, people still use it, as we need it. Its vital.
Martin, Ipswich, UK
Why oh why can't people read into strategies correctly? The modes of transport listed explain how much CO2 would be emitted in addition to you living your life. So walking wont emit any CO2 when you take into account the fact we all breathe anyway! What is the solution to this? Cycling for up to about 30 minutes is a good alternative to driving. It's not always warm here though, so that puts people off. Throughout London and the continent it is excellent just how many people use bicycles just generally and also to commute. We need to get showers installed in all work places and cycling promoted heavily; this would categorically encourage people, I for one would cycle more to work than I do at the moment. Let's pretend CO2 isn't a problem: America is a prime example of what happens when you drive 100 metres from a shop to another shop as paths aren't provided - severe obbesity empidemic.We need an attitude change,both parental and from actual employers. Cycling is easy when accomodated.
G.Marco, Glasgow, Scotland
Raising fuel prices? Not likely. Prices have gone up and up and, yet, consumption also goes up. I would be ALL for it if the government could promise the extra money, %100 of it, went to research and development in environmental projects... which they would never EVER do. And I like the idea of walking or cycling to work that's 1-2 miles away, but I think they should re-state that as "If you work 2km away and actually feel the need to drive the whole two minutes, you're a lazy bastard." And the stricter speed limit is also likely to do little. I would not be too far off to bet that most emissions happen during the horrid traffic jams that plague the motorways. And, Richard from Rochester, I thought people like you only lived in the US. I'm glad to see we don't have a monopoly on your kind.
Aaron Martin-Colby, Saunderstown, Rhode Island, USA
Please can we all forget all this CO2 rubbish. This is natural - the earth warms and cools in cycles. If you check the records, it is clear that the temperature goes up BEFORE the CO2 increases - NOT the other way around. One volcanic eruption will reverse the last 20 years of warming. Just keep driving and let nature sort things out for herself. The only effective action mankind could take would be to cool the sun down a liitle - any ideas anyone?
Richard, Rochester, UK
Walking yields 0 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometer? Really. I don't think so. Last time I checked, Humans use cellular respiration to breath. This means that we exhale carbon dioxide. According to a study humans exhale 900 grams per day. That's an average of 37.5 grams per hour. Now tell me walking doesn't cause carbon dioxide emissions, when normal breathing causes it all the time. Therefore environmentalists should save the planet by closing their mouths, and saving their wind.
Ross Anthony Savage, Virginia Beach, Virginia
Mark Thomas 'Always stick, never carrot" ??!!??!!
We've been having our carrot for the last 100 years!! Time for some stick.....
Rob Jones, Chicago, USA
CO2 CO2 CO2. cars account for 7pc of CO2 emissions, the rest is emmited by aviation and mainly electricity production, and yet we are still building coal and peat stations!
Charles, dublin, Ireland
Always stick, never carrot. Every transport strategy from the last ten years has at its core, a motive of pricing drivers out of their cars. What about enforcing flexible hours, putting on 'work buses' to take groups of employees door-to-door from known points near to towns where groups of them live? What about actually making it significantly *cheaper* to travel by bus, to the point where it actually saves people money compared to driving? Think about what motivates people and, just for once, listen to what we want.
A much more effective solution to reduce both congestion and CO² emissions is for businesses to, wherever feasible, encourage teleworking and out-of-office contributions from employees.
We're always paying more in this country, never less.
Mark Thomas, Biddulph, UK
Turning off your air conditioning and driving with the windows down negatively impacts a car's aerodynamics and probably costs more in lost mileage than turning off the air con. Air con sapping mileage was true years ago when it was less efficient and cars less aerodynamic. Not any more.
When will the buses run on CO2 and why are so many empty, clogging up the streets?
Richard Essex, London, England
I was surprised to read that a person walking or cycling emits no carbon dioxide. This is untrue.
Other errors:
Train commute figure ignores travel from home to the station and from the station to the workplace;
Bus emission figures per the NAEI is 89 grams rather than 66 grams; and this figure is an average and therefore ignores the extra emissions produced in the rush hour (whereas the car figure has been increased for this factor);
339g/km is the figure when one is actually in a traffic jam, not the average figure for all car commuting journeys;
Bus and train emission figures assume bus or train is partly or wholly full, but the car figure makes no allowance for cars with passengers;
Overall, then, these figures are pretty dishonest.
Frank Upton, Solihull,
Why dont they spend the vast sums of money that state sponsored lessons (I can just see the eco- consultants rubbing their hands together on the thought of all that tax payers money available) and spend it on improving public transport - bring back conductors and drivers that speak english and throw off kids with knives and drunks, and then yes, I will start reducing my carbon emissions.
Until then I will continue to emit carbon in the relative safety (apart from unisured drivers) of my car, and work out a way of how to get the hell out of this ethically, environmentally and socially bankrupt country.
MGB, Carmarthen, Wales
Well, anyone who has cycled up a hill will know (when gasping for oxygen) that the carbon emission rate for cycling is not 0g/ km.
Seriously, I do have problems with figures like these. The main reason why our roads are so busy is because of the need for people to drive to work. This in fact was brought about by government when the 'mobile work force' was introduced. The vast majority of people don't enjoy sitting in their vehicles for lengthy periods every day, but they are forced into it by a combination of job insecurity, company relocations and house prices. It is hard to see how putting up the cost of fuel is going to help this situation.
Public transport sounds an attractive alternative, but not when you look at the practicalities of it and the costs. It is all very well if you happen to live in a large city or near a station, but largely, you can forget it if you live elsewhere. The160 mile round trip from my local station to Central London costs about £80. Yes, £80!
Kenn, Thames Valley,
Hang on a minute, zero Carbon Dioxide emmisions when walking/cycling.
Do I have to hold my breath when I walk to work then?
Jim, Bristol,
I found that putting my car on cruise control for 55 mph boosts my miles per gallon immensely. And coasting when you're going downhill is a good strategy too. I'm definitely trying to drive smarter when I do have to drive. I've biked to work most of my life, and always take Amtrak train service for longer trips when possible.
Andrea, Waterford, Connecticut, USA
No mention at all of small capacity motorbikes and scooters for commuting: my 250cc Peugeot does not cause congestion, and does over 80mpg. I have no idea about it's CO2 emissions, but it meets the latest (and I believe, the next planned) standards so can't be that bad.
S Chapman, Essex, UK
Another angle from which the Government can tax us AND remain on some sort of pseudo-moral high ground. Perfect.
R Sullivan, Chislehurst,
Having just learned to drive at the grand old age of 33 after years of hideous journey's on public transport there is no chance at all of me giving up my car to go back to it. I work 5 miles from home using bus and walking it takes 1.5 hours time in car 10 mins. Go do the maths why on earth would I add 3 hours to an already stressful day. having a car has allowed me to rejoin the gym here (getting to and from it was just totally unpractical on public transport) and to feel safer travelling on my own. As for shopping its totally impractical without a car and as a taxi was £10 I won't be bussing there and getting a taxi back.
unless the govt introuduce public transport that picks me up door to door, at times that suit me and doesn't force me to sit with other annoying people then I shall refuse to be parted from my car.
Britny Alfonzetti, Elgin, scotland