Transportation has become a necessary need nowadays because it saves the time of people by helping them to reach places in less amount of time. But a massive drawback of transportation is that conventional vehicles use a massive amount of fuels and when such fuels burn, greenhouse gases such as carbon is emitted. Emission of such harmful gases contributes to a lot of adverse effects like climatic change, global warming, etc. There are many ways to reduce your carbon footprint from transportation. Let’s find out such ways without further due!
1-Reduce Carbon Footprint Using Your Car
If you have a car and you don’t want to sell it to use public transportation, then you can take different measures to reduce your carbon footprint. The emission of 27% of greenhouse gases in the United States come from transportation.
2-Carpool with your Friends and Family
You can use your car to go with your friends and family together to reduce your carbon footprint. If your friend’s workplace and your workplace is nearby, then why not go together. It can also get you some enjoyment while going to work rather than going alone and being bored. What’s better than reducing carbon footprint, saving the environment, and enjoying with your friends as well!
Carpooling can also be done with your roommates, flatmates, or neighbors. Moreover, while going on trips or hangouts, you can use a single car instead of multiple cars.
3-Combine All your Trips
Instead of going to buy groceries every other day or every week, you can combine all your trips. It will require a little planning, but once you get used to it, it won’t be an issue. Buy things in bulk instead of buying single things and use them for a whole month. You can also get your friends and family to go grocery shopping with you and introduce them to your carbon footprint reducing idea. If at the time, they are busy to go with you, you can ask them to make you a list of things they want so you can buy for them by yourself.
4-Change your Driving Style
More weight in your car leads to more consumption of fuel, which produces more carbon in the result. If you are going on a trip, take as less luggage as you can. Moreover, don’t try to fit more people in your car, then it is allowed. Another thing you can do about your driving style to reduce your carbon footprint is to drive on an average speed. Driving too fast also consumes more fuel. When you drive fast, your mileage is reduced by 3.3%, which can result in the emission of a lot of carbon in the long run.
5-Alternatives to Driving a Car
If you are willing to use an alternate method of traveling through your car, then you can adopt the ways mentioned below. Using private vehicles are the biggest source of carbon emissions through transportation. Let’s find out alternate ways of traveling!
6-Public Transportation
Using public transportation instead of personal cars can reduce carbon emission up to 37 million metric tons every year. The government of every country should introduce more and cleaner sources of public transportation so that no one hesitates to use them. In some states, the situation of public transport is so unhygienic that people feel ashamed to use them. But if your country has proper public transportation such as buses, rails, etc.then you must use them instead of using a personal car. Public transportation traveling is inexpensive as well and can save you a lot of money. It is because buying a car is expensive and then the money required for fuel is more than the money needed to travel on a bus.
7-Biking and Walking
Consider using a bicycle instead of a motorbike or a car. Bicycling is a healthy way of traveling because it increases your physical activity while there is no physical activity involved in driving a car. You can easily travel short distances by using a bicycle. As a bike doesn’t need fuel to work, there is no carbon emission through a bike.
If you don’t want to buy a bicycle, you can also walk to short distances. It also has the effects of using a bike as it increases your physical activity. Both of these methods can reduce carbon emission to a great extent.
8-Electric Vehicles
Nowadays you can nearly find everything that works with electricity and other such sources. There are many electric vehicles present that uses solar panels, electrical generators, etc. Electric cars don’t need fuels to work; thus they are a greener source of traveling. They have a lower carbon footprint as compared to gasoline-powered vehicles.
9-Other Ways to Reduce the Carbon Footprint
You can reduce your traveling carbon footprint in many other ways as well. Reducing carbon footprint can benefit you in the long run as well because the effects of greenhouse gases also affect humans in different ways. Read further to find out more ways to reduce the carbon footprint!
10-Change your Air Traveling Style
Air traveling through airplanes is also a significant part of traveling. It also emits a large amount of carbon in the environment and causes air pollution. You can take different measures to change your traveling style and decrease carbon emissions through air travel. Pack less luggage instead of taking your whole closet when you travel through an airplane. It is because the more weight an aircraft has, the more fuel it consumes. Consumption and burning of fuel causes the emission of carbon. Moreover, traveling in private jets is terrible for the environment. Therefore, always travel in economy class.
11-Being Close to Workplace/School
If most traveling you do is to your workplace or school/college, then you can consider living nearby. This way, you won’t have to drive or use public transportation. You can easily walk to your workplace/ school and contribute to the carbon emission as less as possible.
Conclusion
Reducing your traveling carbon footprint has many benefits for the Earth and you as well. Use public transportation, bikes, electric vehicles. Consider walking to nearby places. Carpool and combine trips to use less fuel. All these measures can result in the reduction of carbon in the air.