Commuting is a bug bear for most people who have to travel to work on a daily basis. Fighting public transport delays, traffic jams, school traffic, crowded trains and buses and going on the tube. On top of all this is the environmental harm that we are generating from each daily commute. To demonstrate this, we can take a look at the carbon footprint figures for commuting by car, train and bus.
| Type of commute | Carbon footprint |
| Driving one mile in a car | 344 g CO²e in a Citroen C1 doing 60 mph
2.24 kg CO²e in a Landrover Discovery doing 90 mph |
| A congested commute by car | 22 kg CO²e in a five mile crawl |
| A mile by train | 150 g CO²e Intercity Standard Class
300 g CO²e Intercity First Class |
| A mile by bus | 150 g CO²e for a typical London bus passenger
1.4 kg CO²e for a Lake District resident sharing a double decker with just the driver |
| Cycling a mile | 65 g CO²e (for a banana breakfast to give you the energy for your bike ride)
90 g CO²e (for a cereal and milk breakfast to give you the energy for your bike ride) |
Source: Adapted from Berners-Lee (2010) [1]
Very quickly we can see the worst offenders. This article aims to explain which method of commuting is best for your circumstances and which methods are the worst and why.
Car
Almost two-thirds of commuting is by car [2]. As we can see from the table above, depending on when you drive, what car you drive, how you drive it and how many people you take with you, can all affect your commuting carbon footprint. Driving a smaller car can cut your carbon footprint, as can driving at a slower speed on the motorway. Driving at peak rush hour can increase your carbon footprint. This is because you are likely to be crawling along the road, stopping and starting. Accelerating, decelerating and braking use considerable amounts of fuel and increase your CO²e emissions. By sharing your car with other people, you will be sharing the CO²e emissions between you and taking cars off the road.
Train
Travelling by train is as efficient as travelling by bus. However, if you are lucky enough to be able to afford to travel first class, you may be doing more harm than good. There are half as many seats in first class than in standard class, therefore the amount of CO²e emissions is divided by fewer people (or passengers). The table above shows that a car full of people will have a lower carbon footprint than a train journey. This is surprising as public transport is presumed to be greener than cars. However, this can be attributed to the number of stops a train has to make. Each stop wastes energy [1]. Also trains are far heavier than cars, and it takes a lot of energy to get them moving and slow them down. This all contributes to higher CO²e emissions than would be presumed. However, taking the train is still more efficient than if you were to drive alone to work.
Bus
It is fair to say that if you live in a town or city, it is far more efficient to take the bus. This is because more people will be on the bus, and so the carbon emissions will be divided by however many of you are on the bus. In the countryside, the bus service is used far less. This is due to accessibility problems, the poor frequency of the buses and the higher costs with travelling more miles. Therefore travelling by bus needs to be considered depending on your personal circumstances.
Cycling
Cycling is a low carbon way of getting to work. If two people in a household commuted to work by bicycle every day, they would save a tonne of carbon dioxide a year [3]. There are more dedicated cycle tracks to and from cities making the daily commute that much safer, healthier and more relaxing. Sustrans is an organisation dedicated to developing cycle tracks and promotes cycling to work. You can access a copy of the National Cycle Network on their website, which they claim is available to everyone and passes within a mile of 57% of the population [4].
Cycling still has carbon emissions because you will be eating more to give you the extra energy to ride your bike. It is the extra calories from food production which causes the carbon emissions in this instance, not the actual bike itself. Many companies are now offering Cycle to Work Schemes. This allows the employee to rent a bike from the employer for several months, and then buy the bike from them at a second hand price at the end of rental period. This is a great way to reduce your carbon emissions at low cost. Folding bikes are also a good investment if you use public transport. Getting a folding bike can help you commute between your home and the train station and your workplace, cutting commuting times.
Walking
In an ideal situation we would all walk to work. Not only would it keep us fit, but we could get some oxygen to the brain before we started work and we would also be keeping our commuting carbon footprint to a minimum. Being able to walk to work means moving nearer to your work place. This is not always possible in cities where homes near to the centre are priced at a premium. However, if you do have the financial means to live nearer to your work place, it is worth the consideration of moving in order to be able to commute on foot in a greener, more relaxing way.
Home working
Many companies are introducing home working as a way to cut their carbon emissions. This cuts out the daily commute altogether. Many companies will trial home working for part of the week and find it cuts other costs at their end. Speak to your employer about embracing this form of working to cut down on your carbon footprint.
Plan your journey
Up-to-date local knowledge can help you avoid congestion and roadworks, keep your travel time down and make sure you don’t get lost [5]. Check travel news websites before you leave for work to keep abreast of areas of congestion and road accidents that you can avoid and get to know quieter routes in your local area. This can cut down on carbon emissions and save you time and money on your daily commute.
Top ten tips for a greener commute
- If you are travelling alone, use public transport or get on your bike.
- Car share to spread the carbon footprint between yourself and your friends and colleagues.
- Drive a smaller car. Smaller cars tend to get more miles per gallon of petrol, thus saving CO²e emissions and money.
- Make sure your tyre pressure and tracking is correct. The wrong tyre pressure can make your car consume more petrol and increase your carbon footprint.
- Slow down. A 60 mph car journey will produce 10% less CO²e emissions than a journey at 70 mph.
- Take advantage of flexi-time at work to avoid rush hour on the roads. Traffic jams can dramatically increase your CO²e emissions.
- Don’t use your air conditioning unless you really have to. Air conditioning uses extra fuel, thus increasing your CO²e emissions.
- If you live in the countryside, a car journey may be better than a lone bus journey.
- If you are cycling to work, eat a low-carbon calorific breakfast.
- Accelerating and decelerating gently can save up to 20% in urban conditions [1].
References
[1] Berners-Lee, M. (2010) How Bad Are Bananas? The Carbon Footprint of Everything. Profile Books Ltd.
[2] Vaze, P. (2009) The Economical Environmentalist. Earthscan.
[3] Burley, H. And Haslam, C. (2008) How Can I Stop Climate Change? HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
[4] Sustrans (2010) National Cycle Network http://www.sustrans.org.uk/what-we-do/national-cycle-network
[5] Energy Saving Trust (2010) Planning Your Journey http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/Travel/Alternative-transport/Planning-your-journey
