Greener Journeys on the Bus
A three-year campaign has been launched today in an ambitious bid to switch car journies to buses by 2014.
Whilst this may seem a tall order for car-loving Brits, the organisers of the Greener Journeys campaign believe this can be achieved if just 1 in 25 car journies are taken by bus instead.
The Greener Journeys campaign is a coalition of bus companies who will encourage drivers to take the bus instead by giving away a million free bus trips!
According to Claire Haigh from Greener Journeys:
“A recent survey found a fifth of motorists would be prepared to swap to public transport for reasons to do with the environment. Just one double-decker bus can take 75 cars off the road, considerably reducing emissions levels.”
By taking 1 billion car journeys off our roads, greener bus journeys will save an estimated 2 million tonnes of CO2. But it’s not just the environment that will benefit.
Greener Journeys commissioned an experiment that compared the stress levels of 30 commuters taking similar journeys by var and by bus. The experiment found that thos commuters that took the bus were 33% less stressed than those who drove their cars.
“The improvement in the comfort of modern buses might be a reason the bus is less stressful when compared to congestion, traffic jams and the cost and difficulties of finding parking,” Ms Haigh said.
For more information, or to enter to win free bus tickets, visit www.greenerjourneys.com
Comments
allgreen
Fri, 10/01/2010 - 06:35
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You're absolutely right there, Helen - There's a bus stop right at the end of my road in the suburbs of Farnborough, it's a 2 minute walk from my house but the bus that stops there is not the one I need.
Instead, to get to the town centre where I work, a journey of 3.7 miles by road, I have to walk 1 mile (about 10 minutes walk) to the appropriate bus stop, pay £2.20 (single) for a 1.7 mile (5 minute) bus ride to Kingsmead shopping centre then walk the final mile (another 10 minutes) to my office/studio.
So the "bus ride" still involves 2 miles of walking and I "save" about 15 minutes of walking by spending just over 2 quid.
It's actually easier and cheaper to cycle so I do.
Helen (not verified)
Fri, 09/24/2010 - 15:35
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I appreciate the aim of the greener journeys and believe that more people should use public transport and I hope the initiative has created some improvements in public transport, I think that steps need to be made to improve times, buses, routes, pricing and then I think more people will consider it. I think that it is important to remember that London has a great public transport infrastructure but not all cities have this available.