Transportation

and
Climate Change
Reducing Greenhouse
Gases With Smart Choices

Center for
Neighborhood
Technology
 Three Questions to Consider:
 What is climate
change?
 How does
transportation impact
climate change?
 What are some
There is no ONE WAY to reduce
solutions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions caused
the impact of by our using transportation. This
PowerPoint will introduce you to
transportation on several different solutions.

climate change?
 Global Warming: Just the
Facts
 The Earth has a natural
greenhouse effect.

 Greenhouse gases
(GHGs), such as
Carbon Dioxide (CO2),
trap heat in the
atmosphere, warming
the surface of the
planet. http://www.epa.gov/globalwarming/kids/bigdeal.html
How does it Work?

http://yosemite.epa.gov/oar/globalwarming.nsf/content/climate.html
 Humans and GHGs
 Since the start of the
industrial revolution,
humans have caused the
levels of greenhouse
gases in the atmosphere
to rise through the burning
of fossil fuels.

 We burn fossil fuels to

heat our homes, generate
electricity, fuel our cars
and buses, and
manufacture materials
such as paper and steel.
http://www.epa.gov/globalwarming/kids/bigdeal.html
 What’s the Impact of More
CO2?
 Scientists believe that
the increased levels of
carbon dioxide could
cause increased
temperatures, changed
weather patterns, and
rising sea levels.

 Why should we worry?

These changes could The Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center

disrupt our way of life.

What’s Transportation Got to
do With It?

Transportation -
33%

Other - 67%
[industrial,
commercial,
residential]

Transportation accounts for 33% of

greenhouse gas emissions in the US and 8% of
worldwide greenhouse gas emissions.
Source: US Energy Information Administration,
“Emissions of Greenhouse Gases in the United
States 2000,” November 2000.
[http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/1605/ggrpt/index.html]
 Are Things Getting Better?
Vehicle
1988 2003
MPG
28.5 29.5
Car
mpg mpg
Light 21.7 21.8
Truck mpg mpg
Fleet 26.2 25.1
Average mpg mpg
mpg = Miles per Gallon (how much a vehicle can travel per gallon of fuel)
 What Can We Do to Reduce
Transportation Emissions?
 Use Public Transportation

 Promote well-planned growth and development

 Carpool

 Improve Vehicle Efficiency

 Adopt New Technologies

 Educate Ourselves and Others

 Why Use Public
Transportation?
 Public transportation
releases fewer
greenhouse gas emissions
into the air per person than
driving does.

 Taking a train or bus is

much cheaper than owning
a car, and you don’t have
to find a parking space
once you get to your http://www.wpipbereanradio.org/images/busload2.jpg

destination! Hey, look! Everyone likes to

ride the bus!
 The Power of Transit
 If just 7% of daily car trips
in the US were replaced
by transit trips, carbon
emissions would be cut
by an amount equal to
20% of the commercial
emissions.

 If you live near transit, it’s

easy to get to school, get
to work, and run errands.
 Getting around the Old
Fashioned Way
 When transit is not
available, you can
walk or bike.

 Walking or bike riding

releases no
greenhouse gases— http://peach.mie.utoronto.ca/people/tsangc/europe-index.html

and it’s fun! This picture, from Denmark, shows bikes

outside of a train station. Bike use is higher
in Europe because of innovative
government programs that encourage their
use.
 Your Doctor Says:
 For good health,
experts recommend
exercising between 30-
60 minutes a day.

 Why not get your

exercise by walking,
biking, or rollerblading
to school or work?
What Can we do to Encourage
Public Transit Use?
 Poorly planned neighborhoods discourage transit
use.
 We need to look at how our neighborhoods are
designed.
– Do they make it convenient to use public transit?
 The design of neighborhoods also effects how
much we walk or bike.
– For example, do neighborhoods offer bike trails or
walking paths?
Urban sprawl is not smart growth!
 What is Smart Growth?
 Smart Growth describes the efforts of
many communities across America that try
to manage growth to reduce the amount of
damage on the environment while building
livable towns and cities.

 Transit-Oriented Development: A model

approach providing “smart” ideas for how
communities can grow to achieve the goals
above.
 What is Transit-oriented
Development?
 Planned growth that
encourages:

– Mixed residential and

business neighborhoods

– Transit use, walking, and

biking instead of driving
This picture shows a
train stop located
– Efficient land use near businesses that
are easy to get to by walking!
 Why Transit-Oriented
Development?
 By building businesses
and homes near transit
sites, employees are
more likely to use
transit to get to work
and run errands.

 More people using

transit and walking =
lower CO2
emissions!
 Benefits of Increased Transit
Use
 Reduced CO2
emissions

 Less congestion

 Better air quality

 Less sprawl
Urban sprawl encourages the use
of personal vehicles. This means
more greenhouse gas emissions.
Making the Connection: Cities
and Carbon Dioxide
More Transit Options = Reduced
Carbon Dioxide Emissions
 If You Must Drive, Don’t be a
Fool: Carpool
 On average in the US,
there are only 1.6
people in a car for any
trip taken; just 1.1
people for the trip to
work.

 How can we encourage Carpooling is a good way for

you to spend time with friends
carpooling? during your morning commute.

http://www.tstc.org/bulletin/20011001/mtr33601.htm
 Ways to Improve Fuel
Efficiency:
 Obey the speed limit

 Avoid rapid
acceleration

 Maintain your vehicle

 Keep your tires fully

inflated

www.edmunds.com/media/editorial/viewpoints/speed/speedlimit.500.jpg
What Does the Future Hold for
Transit Emissions?
Expect to see:
 Fuels that emit fewer greenhouse
gases than traditional oil based fuels

 New technologies that increase fuel

efficiency

 Smarter planning for future land use

 More transportation options

 Even Transit can Get Cleaner:
A Comparison of Emissions from Different Bus Fuels

Type of Fuel CO2 Emissions

(lbs per mile)
Gasoline 16.1
Diesel 13.3
CNG 11.7
B20 11.5
Ethanol from corn 11.0
Hydrogen (NG) 7.3
Biodiesel from soybean 3.7
Hydrogen (electrolysis) 1.3
 Petroleum and Beyond….
Replacement and Alternative Fuels include:

 Compressed Natural
Gas

 Ethanol

 Hydrogen

 Biodiesel
 Compressed Natural Gas
 Most likely to replace diesel fuel in buses

 Becoming the most popular alternative fuel

 Reduces emissions of some air pollutants

 Has an undetermined impact on GHG

emissions
 Ethanol
 Alternative fuel made
from corn
 Can reduce CO2
emissions by 17%
 Widely used
transitional fuel
 Costs more
 Less efficient—means
more fuel is consumed
http://www.hybridfuels.ca/images/pics/ethanol.jpg
 The Fuel of the Future: Hydrogen
 Hydrogen can be
burned in engines or
used in fuel cells.

 Hydrogen fuel cells

have the potential
to emit no
greenhouse gases.
 Hydrogen and Buses
 Hydrogen-powered buses have been used
in Chicago, Vancouver, Washington D.C.,
London, and 9 other European cities.
 The buses release no emissions and run
quietly.
 Hydrogen is very hard to produce and store.
 Biodiesel
 Biodiesel is fuel made from the
oil of vegetables or recycled
cooking greases.

 100% biodiesel can reduce GHG

emissions by 72%.

 School systems, municipal transit

agencies, and the military have
adopted this technology.
In gas stations around the
world, biodiesel is sold
next to regular fuel. See if
your gas station sells it
next time you go to fill up
the tank.
 Greased Lightning

http://www.grassolean.com/postnuke/index.php

 This car has been modified to run on

FRENCH FRY GREASE.
(100% Biodiesel)
 Power it up: Electricity as a
Fuel
 Electric vehicles consume less energy per mile
than traditional internal combustion engines.
 There are some electric cars on the market.
 Electric cars are only as clean as their power
source.

www.ccities.doe.gov/contacts/images/denver_4.jpg
 Electric Transit
 Many cities across the United States are
using electric buses and trolleys, including
New York, Chattanooga, Atlanta, and
Honolulu.
 These buses and trolleys allow riders to see
how electric technology works.
 Electric vehicles run off of a rechargeable
battery.
 Existing Hybrid (Fuel-Cell)
Technology

 Combination of electric
motor and a traditional
engine.
 By alternating between the
electric motor and the
internal combustion
engine, the car utilizes
power and fuel more
efficiently.
 Several cities are
purchasing hybrid buses.
 Can we Afford to Drive?

 Driving imposes an “externality.”

 An externality exists when individuals do not

pay the whole cost of an action.

 Society must pay the costs associated with

driving including global warming and air
pollution.
How Much Does it Cost to Operate
a Car?
 It costs about $0.611 per mile to drive your car. Since most
people drive about 11,0002 miles per year, it costs about
$7,320.00 a year to own and drive your car!

 Costs include yearly payments for:

– insurance
– finance charge
– license fee
– depreciation
– gas/oil
– maintenance
 Internalizing the Externality
 Some policy makers propose internalizing the costs
of driving so that individuals pay the “true” cost of
driving.

 Here’s the idea: Taxes on carbon emissions will

increase the costs of driving and increase the desire
for fuel-efficient cars.
 How much should Gas Cost?
 The United Kingdom
charges around $4 in
taxes per gallon of gas.
 The US only charges 41
cents per gallon.
 Including all costs, a gallon
of gas should cost
between $5.60 and
$15.14. But, as
consumers, we only pay
$1.50-2.00/gallon of gas.
 Putting it all together:
 As a transportation consumer, you
now know:
- The effects of climate change
- How transportation contributes to
climate change
- Solutions for reducing
transportation’s impact on climate
change

The Question is:

What are you going to do about it ?
Check out how your transportation
choices affect global climate change:
www.travelmatters.org