What sustainable travel means
For thousands of years, people have found clever ways to make travel quicker and easier, but some of these ways of travelling are damaging our planet.
We have invented bikes, cars, boats, planes, helicopters, trains and lots of other ways to move us from one place to another. While they make life more convenient, many of these are fuelled by petrol or diesel, which come from non-renewable fossil fuels.
These release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, contributing towards global warming, climate change and air pollution, which is harmful to our health.
Are all types of transport equally bad for the environment?
No. The diagram shows the most sustainable types of travel at the top, with private car use being the least sustainable option at the bottom.
Walking, wheeling, cycling and scooting
Walking, wheeling, cycling and scooting are all people powered, making them the least harmful ways to travel as they produce the least amount of carbon dioxide.
Public transport
For longer journeys, public transport is the most environmentally friendly option. Whilst most buses run on fossil fuels, they can carry lots of passengers at once, which reduces emissions per person. Trains also produce lower emissions per person and some run on electricity generated from renewable energy sources.
Shared transport
Shared transport is any type of transport that you share with others outside of your household. This can be at the same time, such as car sharing, or independently, such as a taxi or a car club scheme. These vehicles may be diesel, petrol or electric. Using an electric vehicle and sharing with others at the same time improves the sustainability of this option.
Private cars
Overall petrol and diesel cars collectively release the most amount of carbon emissions, as they are used most often and there are so many of them. Road transport is responsible for nearly 75% of all transport emissions.
In Central Bedfordshire, car use is higher than the national average. According to the 2021 census, 50% of households owned 2 or more vehicles compared to 35% nationally.
If you own a car there may be ways you can reduce your environmental impact, including:
- leave your car at home – walking, wheeling, cycling or scooting for shorter journeys or using public transport for longer journeys will reduce your environmental impact and help improve local air quality
- car share – sharing a journey with someone else will result in one less car on the road reducing vehicle emissions, congestion and fuel costs
- combine journeys – think about combining any journeys you need to make by car to save money and reduce your environmental impact
- consider switching to an electric car – electric cars don’t produce carbon emissions or contribute towards air pollution and are generally cheaper to run
What other ways can we reduce our environmental impact?
Transporting goods by plane, ship and heavy goods vehicles uses a lot of energy and mostly relies on fossil fuels. Choosing locally produced goods can help reduce the distance items are transported, which lowers the environmental impact.