Did you know driving a car is the single largest household contributor of greenhouse gases? Recently, the focus worldwide is on slowing climate change. As our lifestyles keep us on the go more and more, carbon emissions have increased dramatically, cars being one of the greatest offenders. Driving a car accounts for as much as 55-65% of emissions per household.
Switching to riding Metro, even for just one day a week or month, can significantly reduce your carbon footprint.
Why Your Carbon Footprint Matters
We’re all dependent on our environment. People, animals, and plants all need fresh air, clean water, and reliable weather patterns to live healthy lives. But as our emissions increase, toxins pollute it all.
Heading out on a solo drive may seem efficient in the moment, but each trip out does more damage than you’re probably aware of. Driving to work, the store, or to a restaurant to meet a friend contributes 19.6 pounds of carbon dioxide for every gallon of gas burned.
In fact, half of all CO2 transportation-related emissions in the United States come from passenger cars, minivans, SUVs, and pickup trucks. If you opt to leave your car behind for even one trip per week, you’ll be making a BIG difference.
This Earth Day is a great time to make a conscious commitment to reducing your carbon footprint and living just a little lighter on our shared environment. Switching from driving a car to riding Metro is the single biggest action you can take to immediately decrease your impact on our planet.
Driving vs Riding Metro
On average, a single car generates six to nine tons of carbon dioxide in a calendar year when driven regularly. Switching your weekday commute to a ride on Metro can reduce your annual carbon footprint by about 4,800 pounds. You’ll also be able to reduce or even eliminate your dependency on gas.
Driving an electric vehicle is a much cleaner option than a gas-powered or hybrid car, but even electric cars contribute emissions when creating and using electricity to run.
The Metro is engineered to generate fewer emissions, decreasing an individual’s greenhouse gas emissions by 46% per mile traveled. As scientists continue to improve our production and usage of clean energy, the environmental impact of riding the Metro will continue to decrease.
Since Metro runs on a schedule, regardless of occupancy, the more people that share a ride on Metro, the more we can collectively reduce our emissions in the D.C. Metro region.
Riding Metro Can Help Improve Your Self Care
How much time do you currently spend looking at traffic updates before you get in the car, driving and sitting in traffic, and then driving around some more while you search for parking?
While a Metro ride may take a few minutes more than driving door to door, you don’t need to worry about traffic or parking at all. Moreover, that time can be used for other more enjoyable activities.
Things to Do While Riding Metro:
- Read
- Work
- Take a nap
- Crochet/Knit
- Write/Journal
- Watch a TV show
- Listen to a podcast
- Chat with other riders
- Catch up on your texts
- Plan your next vacation
- Follow a guided meditation
- Play a game on your phone
Riding Metro Will Help You Live More Sustainably
If you’re interested in making sustainable change in your life, switching from driving to riding Metro is one of the easiest and most impactful changes you can make.
While other changes like giving up using straws, composting, or shopping for produce at a farmers market make a small impact, taking Metro instead of your car makes a big difference. Even better, it doesn’t require any extra equipment or preparation.
Ready to hop on the Metro? Tysons Central Connect can help plan your trip! The Tysons Central Connect team, Tysons Central Connect’s on-site travel and commute planning assistants, can help you get to the places you need to go. Whether that is getting to work on the Metro, teleworking, or simply sharing the best walking or biking routes in the area, our team is here to help! Simply reach out to our team at info@TysonsCentralConnect.com. We look forward to chatting with you soon.