top of page
rpwills

Reducing car use – is it right to concentrate on the short trips?

One area where individuals are encouraged to make a change in their lifestyle to cut carbon equivalent emissions is that of cutting out as many as possible of the short journeys by car. Figures suggest that 72% of journeys are under 5 miles (1) with 50% of journeys under two miles (2). Alternatives such as walking, cycling and public transport are suggested. Such an approach appears a desirable change to encourage in travel habits, not only for environmental reasons but also for health purposes. With many short trips in urban areas, reducing short trips would also cut congestion.

Yet the focus on reducing the number of short journeys might be misplaced. Although, short trips make up most of all car trips, they do not account for the majority of journey miles. A survey in Scotland noted that "despite 45 per cent of trips being under 8 kilometres 5 miles] in length, these accounted for just 12 per cent of trips of total car kilometres in 2019. (3) Conversely, although trips of 55 kilometres (34 miles) accounted for just 4% of trips, they resulted in 30% of vehicle miles. A study in Cardiff indicated that by substituting about 41% of trips of under 3 miles by walking or cycling, would reduce carbon equivalent emissions by nearly 5% (4).

The benefits of cutting emissions by reducing short trips would be insubstantial. By emphasising the need to limit short journeys also takes the pressure of those who use their cars for longer journeys where reductions could have a significant impact on emissions. There may be an element of equity to consider as well, presumably the more affluent are more likely to make longer trips.

The focus on short journeys does not take account of why people travel. There is a difference in someone using their car to do a weekly shop as opposed to going out for just one item, compared to someone making a longer trip to visit a restaurant some distance away when one nearby might be a more appropriate option. Is driving to the Eden project to learn about the environment really a sensible idea? Probably not. There is a hierarchy of needs to consider.

A useful starting point is the need for demand management, encapsulated in the policy statement by the Green party below.

TR020 A key distinction between Green Party transport policy and others is the emphasis on demand management rather than provision for anticipated demand. We want to provide what is necessary and efficient within ecological constraints. We reject simply providing for anticipated demand as wasteful, damaging and unsustainable. (5).

An alternative approach

An alternative to the current approach would be to reduce car use in general, including short trips but concentrating on longer trips where reductions would lead to larger falls in carbon equivalent emissions.

Households

We could look at:

First question whether the trip is actually necessary? Trying to avoid spur of the moment trips.

Reducing the number of short trips, only using the car for those where there is a definite need to carry the weekly shop for example.

Plan ahead so that a number of activities or errands can be combined in one trip – say combine a trip to the dentist with the weekly shop.

Use the bus (or train) where appropriate rather than the car.

Avoid car trips which might be desirable but are not really necessary.

Policy makers

Although individual households can make a difference, very often there are constraints which can only be dealt with by policy makers.

For example.

Investing in public transport, particularly the bus network.

Raising the cost of fuel for cars. [Some of the revenue raised could go towards an annual allowance for each individual. The recycled money would transfer money from the more affluent, who tend to make more trips, to the less affluent!].

Change planning controls to reduce activities which encourage and generate car use.

Sources and notes

(1) · 72% of journeys are under 5 miles, 50% under 2 miles. If all short journeys were done on foot or by bicycle rather than by car, car mileage could be cut by one-sixth – with no need to sacrifice the freedom to use the car for longer journeys.

· Very short journeys are too short to warm up the car’s engine. It’ll be running inefficiently, burning more fuel and creating more pollution – usually right in the centre of town, where we really don’t need it! [https://www.greenchoices.org/green-living/transport/car-use].

(2) Did you know 50% of journeys are under 2 miles? Switching out short trips in the car for walking, cycling or public transport can have a massive impact for the environment and help keep you fit and healthy. [https://www.hubbub.org.uk/drive-less-active-travel-more-make-our-move]

(3) It is important to recognise that a small number of longer journeys account for a disproportionate percentage of total car kilometres, with around 4 per cent of trips (those over 55 kilometres) accounting for nearly 30 per cent of the total kilometres driven in 2019. Conversely, despite 45 per cent of trips being under 8 kilometres in length, these accounted for just 12 per cent of trips of total car kilometres in 2019." [Internal analysis on Scottish Household Survey, 2019 reported in Transport and Travel in Scotland 2019. https://www.transport.gov.scot/media/48317/sct09201490081.pdf]

(4) "Half of all car trips were less than 3 miles long. Taking into account individual travel patterns and constraints, walking or cycling could realistically substitute for 41% of short car trips, saving nearly 5% of CO2e emissions from car travel." [Andre Neves a , Christian Brand b , Assessing the potential for carbon emissions savings from replacing short car trips with walking and cycling using a mixed GPS-travel diary approach, Transportation Research Part A 123 (2019) ]

7 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Commentaires


bottom of page