How to Live Green — Getting Around

Cars and other vehicles are a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. They are also a considerable drain on household budgets.

Every litre of petrol saved cuts greenhouse gas emissions by 2.8 kilograms and saves you at least $1 plus vehicle wear-and-tear.

There are a number of living green tips you can implement to reduce the impact of you car on the environment:
Commuters living green by catching train

Drive Less
Drive Smart
Slim Your Car

Living Green by Driving Less

No matter how efficiently you drive, leaving the car parked always saves more fuel and helps minimise climate change.

Combine trips: Consider running all your errands in the same area at once, rather than making separate trips. Several short trips taken from a cold start can use twice as much fuel as a longer, multipurpose trip covering the same distance when the engine is warm.
Go for a walk or ride: Rather than drive your car to the corner store or a friend's house, walk or ride your bike there. This has the added advantage of keeping you fit for skiing.
Use public transport: Look into the public transport options in your area, and use them as much as possible.
Carpool: Carpool or use ride-share programs if you can. This might also enable you to shorten the time of your commute by using transit lanes.
Work from home: If your employer allows it, see if you can work from home one or two days a week.
Avoid peak periods: Sitting in peak hour traffic significantly reduces fuel efficiency. If possible, adjust your work schedule so that you avoid peak hour traffic. If you're running errands, wait until peak hour is over.
Make a call: Replace that drive with a phone call, email, text message or fax.

Living Green by Driving Smart

Watching how you drive can improve your car's fuel efficiency, cut climate changing pollution and save you anywhere from $200 to $500 each year. Following are some living green tips to help you drive smarter.

Travel light and pack smart: Less weight increases fuel efficiency. 50 kilograms less weight cuts greenhouse gas emissions by almost two percent. Place luggage inside rather than on roof racks to minimise drag and increase fuel efficiency.
Drive less aggressively: Aggressive driving (rapid acceleration and braking) can increase fuel usage by as much as 33 percent on the highway and five percent in town.
Go easy on the air: Air conditioning can decrease your fuel efficiency by as much as 12 percent in stop-and-go traffic, so consider cracking the windows or just using the fan. Remember though, at high speeds, driving with the windows open can decrease the overall efficiency of your vehicle.
Don't idle: If you are stopping for more than ten seconds (except in traffic) turn off your engine. Idling for more than ten seconds uses more gas and creates more global warming pollution than simply restarting your engine.
Drive in the right gear: Driving in a gear lower than you need wastes fuel as does letting the engine labour in top gear on hills and corners. In a manual vehicle, change up gears as soon as the car is comfortable with the higher gear but without accelerating harder than necessary.
Don't Speed: Fuel consumption increases significantly over about 90 km/h. At 110 km/h your car uses up to 25 percent more fuel than it would cruising at 90 km/h.

Living Green by Slimming Your Car

Choosing the right vehicle and ensuring it is operating at peak performance will further reduce your impact on the environment and help reduce climate change.

Keep your engine tuned properly: A well-tuned car burns less fuel. So make sure that you get your oil and air filters changed regularly and check spark plugs, hoses and belts.
Check the tyres: Have your wheels aligned and keep your tyres at the maximum recommended pressure. By making them roll more easily, this can save up to 100 kilograms of greenhouse gas each year, extend tyre life and improve safety.
Think small: Buy the smallest car you need to carry out your daily activities. Better still, consider a hybrid. The most fuel-efficient vehicles on the road today are hybrid-electric cars. A hybrid combines an electric motor with a conventional, but cleaner, petrol-powered engine.