A greener commute
Telegraph Greener Living supplement
Published on Monday October 1, 2007
There are more initiatives than ever to tempt you out of your car, says Chris Alden.
Work: it’s not something you want to make any worse. You get up at stupid o’clock in the morning, pull on the same musty clothes, shock yourself awake with a cup of tea – and what do you need then? Comforting. So you pull open the car door, slump behind the wheel, turn on your favourite radio station, and cocoon yourself away in your upholstered seat, pumping CO2 into the atmosphere, until the moment you have to walk through the office door and face the boss.
If that’s you, you’re one of the reasons why more than 70% of journeys to work in Britain are made by car – and why, according to the RAC Foundation, Britain is more car-dependent than it has ever been, despite the reality of global warming, oil at $80 a barrel and traffic congestion that’s only getting worse.
Much of that car dependency, it’s true, is not the average motorist’s fault. Rural and urban planners have failed for decades to make it as convenient, pleasant and safe to walk or cycle to our workplaces as it is to take the car. Rural developments are designed almost exclusively with the car in mind – and they might as well be, because there are scarcely any buses, and those that there are run so infrequently that many people don’t know about them anyway. It’s a vicious circle that means half of Britons, according to the RAC Foundation, have never taken a bus – a statistic that might surprise city-dwellers, but which rural folk accept as a fact of life.
Yet most of us also accept, at some level, that our dependency on the car is unsustainable. And that’s perhaps why in recent years the tide has begun to turn, as more companies, campaigners and authorities launch initiatives to encourage green commuting.
The message these schemes are trying to promote is that even if you walk, cycle or take public transport that bit further than you used to – or even share your car journey with someone else – the benefits are felt by everybody.
Lucy Abell is spokeswoman for the Living Streets campaign, which wants to help give streets back to pedestrians – not only to help lower carbon emissions, but to bring life back to our town centres.
“We think streets should be public spaces that people can enjoy – that aren’t just traffic corridors, but somewhere people feel safe to walk in,” she says.
For that reason, Living Streets launched its first Walking to Work campaign earlier this year, which will be extended nationwide in 2008.
“It’s not possible for everyone to walk all the way to work, but it’s got such benefits for the individual; there are mental and physical benefits to being active,” Abell says.
She says the fact that short car journeys are on the rise is a particular concern. “People consistently underestimate how long it takes to drive somewhere and overestimate how long it takes to get there on foot.”
But businesses, she says, need to play a part. “Providing showers is great – or somewhere to store trainers. These things do make a difference.”
Many businesses in recent years have indeed launched “workplace travel plans” as part of their sustainability initiatives – and there are now green commuting incentives that can benefit both employees and employers.
These plans could include the increasingly popular Cycle to Work scheme (http://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/ ), under which employees can purchase cycle equipment under £1,000 and lease it back to the employee under a salary sacrifice. Under the scheme, the employer saves on VAT, the employee saves on income tax, and both save on National Insurance.
Another tax break for cyclists is the 20p a mile that employees can claim from their employers – or from the taxman – for using a bicycle on business; although not between home and the place of work.
Many people are opting for electric cars and bikes in order to reduce carbon emissions and save money at the same time. For example, if you had a G-Wiz electric car (www.goingreen.co.uk), you would emit around two-thirds less carbon emissions than the average driver, all of which would be in the electricity you used to charge the vehicle. If you live in London, you also wouldn’t have to pay the Congestion Charge – although the car isn’t the largest in the world and its safety credentials have been criticised.
Simlilarly, the new range of electric bikes such as the Zipee (www.zipeebikes.com) prove that things have come a long way
since Sir Clive Sinclair’s C5.
Car-sharing is another popular way to get a yourself a greener commute – because you get all the convenience of your car, but you share the cost and the carbon emissions.
Liftshare.com, the UK’s largest car-sharing network, estimates that the typical car sharer can save around a tonne of carbon dioxide every year and £1,000 in fuel, just by sharing their daily commute with someone else. “Once you start it’s not a big change in routine and the financial savings just stack up,” says Angi Davies, spokesman for the company.
This year Britain is also due to open its first car-sharing lane, at the junction of the M606 and M62, between Bradford and Leeds in West Yorkshire – in an effort to keep more cars off the roads.
If you don’t have anyone you know who you can share a lift with, Liftshare.com allows you to find someone – by entering your journey details, whether you’re seeking or offering a lift (or both).
Many businesses also offer car-sharing schemes and website as part of their green travel plans – and many also offer a guaranteed taxi home if, for example for work reasons, you can’t share your car as planned.
With more ways to make your journey to work greener, there’s less reason than ever to stay in your carbon-emitting cocoon.
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