“Commuting to work. A big chunk of our total greenhouse gas emissions and energy usage. ”
Transport is an important part of our daily life and it makes our life very easy. The other side?
“Global transport is responsible for 23% of greenhouse gas emissions, with road traffic being the main source. ”
Most people commute by car to work: flexible, easy to use, gives comfort, shelter, you can take your luggage easily and let’s not forget the design & lifestyle aspect of a car is of importance. Did you ever realize that moving a small car of 1300kg weight for an average person of 75kg is a very inefficient usage of our costly energy, especially when used for shorter distances or around a city? That’s a factor of 17 your own weight you need to transport to work. Consider you drive a larger car of let’s say 1700kg, then it is a factor of 23!
This big mass needs to be moved to a certain speed, over a certain distance using a lot of our costly energy sources. Imagine what you can do with all the energy.
Yes, for a ride of let’s say 50km where other alternatives are limited, or when you bring your complete family it can be a choice. But consider for distances up to, let’s say, 10km it is incredibly inefficient! And it all comes together when we take other factors into consideration such as air pollution, CO2 emissions, congestion, usage of public space, parking, costs of production, etcetera in mind. Not a very smart drive!
The other side of the spectrum: commute by e-bike for a short distance of 10km. The weight of an e-bike of 25kg and the person of 75kg riding on it makes a factor of 0,33. That is 50 times more efficient than the small car of 1300kg!
We hear you thinking: no problem, let’s electrify the car, power it by green energy or even put some sun-cells on the roof so there is ‘no’ CO2, air pollution, etcetera, anymore.
Yeah right. Ever thought about the total mass by adding a batterypackage to a car? You are adding a 200-400kg extra so the factors are … even worser! Any thoughts about producing such a batterypackage and the limited sources on our earth? Ever thought about the space we need for all cars we drive? Infrastructure? Parking areas? Not so efficient especially for a short distance to work!
Even when you put a lot of thinking, engineering and investments in the creation of an e-car of lower mass, you will still be in the very high range of the factors above. This is what we call greenwashing.
the future: light electric vehicles
When we could combine several transportation modes with regard to efficient usage of our costly energy sources, overall sustainability, and limit the usage of our public spaces and the benefits to our society, we create an overall winner by lowering the greenhouse gas / CO2 emissions and air pollution automatically instead of making it even more complex.
The solution to cover the above, limiting the energy usage and emissions is to rethink how we commute:
“A combination of modes would be the ideal solution, taking in mind sustainability, usage of energy and public space versus the individual subjective choices and respective balances. ”
Drive your car.
What a luxury! You have a car!
+ Ease to use + Flexible + Comfortable + Shelter + Lifestyle + Most of the time it is a great design you want to be seen in!
- Costly - Parking - Inefficient use of our public space - Unhealthy lifestyle in case you use it often - Congestion - Air pollution - Green house gas / CO2-emissions are extremely high
190 grams CO2 per person per kilometer travelled, 10m2 of public space continuously in use
Drive your electric car.
What a luxury! You have an electric car!
+ Ease to use + Flexible + Comfortable + Shelter + Lifestyle + Most of the time it is a great design you want to be seen in!
- Costly - Parking - Inefficient use of our public space - Unhealthy lifestyle in case you use it often - Congestion - Air pollution
- Green house gas / CO2-emissions are still very high due to the fact that it is still by far powered by fossil fuels (!)
94 grams CO2 per person per kilometer travelled, 10m2 of public space continuously in use
Drive your ‘sun-celled powered’ car.
Whatever it is, it is still a car. But what a luxury! You have one!
+ Ease to use + Flexible + Comfortable + Shelter + Lifestyle + Most of the time it is a great design you want to be seen in!
- Costly - Parking - Inefficient use of our public space - Unhealthy lifestyle in case you use it often - Congestion
+ (Almost no) air pollution + (Almost no) green house gas / CO2-emissions
While the possibilities to drive a sun-celled or fully green powered car are limited: you need a lot of surface/very efficient sun-cells or other green sources to power it.
2 grams CO2 per person per kilometer travelled, 10m2 of public space continuously in use
By motorcycle.
Beat traffic jams. King of the road on two wheels!
+ Ease to use + Flexible + Easy to park + Lifestyle + Most of the time it is a great design you want to be seen on!
+ Efficient use of our public space + Almost no congestion + Easy parking.
- Costly - Unhealthy lifestyle in case you use it often - Air pollution
- Limited comfort - No shelter - rain, cold, wind are challenging in some cases
- Green house gas / CO2-emissions are still high.
146 grams CO2 per person per kilometer travelled, 1.9 m2 of public space continuously in use
By public transport.
Train, tram, bus. A luxury for the people that have access to. Let’s hope it is a seamless connection!
+ Depends whether it is easy to use + Shelter + Healthy lifestyle when you need the first or last mile using an active mode (walk or cycle) + Efficient use of public space + Most of the time no congestion
- Not so flexible - Depends on mode and time when used whether it is comfortable - Relatively costly depending on mode used
+ Depends by mode whether there is any air pollution + Green house gas / CO2 emissions are limited since it is a shared/public transport mode, while e.g. a train using green power has almost no emissions
20-75 grams CO2 per person per kilometer travelled, 0,7m2 of public space continuously in use
By bike.
Very efficient and healthy!
+ Ease to use + Flexible + very affordable + Easy to park + Great for a shorter ride to work of, let’s say, up to 15km single trip + Lifestyle + Most of the time it is a great design you want to be seen on!
+ Challenging but very healthy exercise for the longer trips + Energy usage is extremely limited: moving 20kg weight with a 75kg person on it! + Muscle powered!
+ Very efficient use of our public space + No congestion + No air pollution + Green house gas / CO2-emissions are almost zero
- Limited comfort - No shelter - rain, cold, wind are challenging in some cases - Limited space for luggage.
0 (zero) grams CO2 per person per kilometer travelled, 1,5m2 of public space continuously in use
By e-bike, or speed-bike.
Very efficient and still healthy! Much faster than a regular bike!
+ Ease to use + Flexible + Affordable + Easy to park + Great for a longer ride to work of, let’s say, 20km single trip. + Lifestyle + Most of the time it is a great design you want to be seen on!
+ Still a healthy exercise although e-powered + Energy usage very limited: moving 25kg weight with a 75kg person on it! + You still need your muscles!
+ Very efficient use of our public space + No congestion + No air pollution + Green house gas / CO2-emissions are almost zero but a bit more than a regular bike
- Limited comfort - No shelter - rain, cold, wind are challenging in some cases - Limited space for luggage
0-3 grams CO2 per person per kilometer travelled, 1,5m2 of public space continuously in use
Walking.
What a luxury … you are able to stroll to work!
+ A dream for everyone, depending on the distance + Very healthy + Depending on the weather very comfortable
- Luggage is limited
Unbeatable with regard to sustainable modes of transport!
0 (zero) grams CO2 per person per kilometer travelled, 0,5m2 of public space continuously in use
“Be part of something bigger.
Solving our mobility issues.
Together.”