The Best Guide for the NN12 Area

Can you challenge yourself to Cut the Carbon?

Can you challenge yourself to Cut the Carbon?

With transport accounting for nearly 70 per cent of the district’s greenhouse gas emissions, drivers are being asked to Cut the Carbon as part of South Northamptonshire Council’s (SNC) Climate Change Challenge.

Each month SNC’s campaign focuses on one theme regarding climate change, and this month drivers are being encouraged to think about their own individual car use and what they can do to reduce their transport emissions.

Cllr Dermot Bambridge, SNC's portfolio holder for environmental services, said: “The early days of lockdown saw road travel reduced enormously across the UK, with car usage well below 40 per cent of normal levels on most days throughout April.

“As well as reduced greenhouse gas emissions, this also meant less noise, congestion and improved air quality.

“So as car travel currently is even as much as 90 per cent of normal levels, we are challenging drivers to see if we can change our travel patterns, so we don’t see emissions from transport returning to previous levels.

“Due to the ongoing health crisis, public transport and car sharing are not recommended and keeping healthy and safe is obviously a priority. But that doesn’t mean other options aren’t available.

“One of the most positive things we have seen is the huge increase in the number of people choosing active travel options such as walking and cycling, and we’d like to encourage that to continue where possible.”

As part of the campaign, SNC will be launching a survey later this month asking residents to share their thoughts on swapping their petrol or diesel cars for an electric one.

For further information about transport and climate change and more tips on how to Cut the Carbon, please follow the council on Facebook and Twitter or visit www.southnorthants.gov.uk/climatechangechallenge

Report this article as inappropriate

Comments

Jeremy H

At 12:57 on 25th August 2020, Jeremy H commented:

This could be one of the most important questions being asked. Think about that!
Transport is clearly a significant polluter but concerningly we are years, decades even, from adequate changes to it. Hopefully they arrive before it's too late to make a real difference globally.
Another suggestion for 'can you challenge yourself to cut the carbon?' is to drive smoothly - such as avoiding hard acceleration from junctions and between gear changes. Also, anticipating upcoming stops or traffic slow-downs a little sooner can reduce heavy braking and time spent on the accelerator. Generally a smoother driving style can reduce fuel consumption by 20%. Certainly not the answer but every reduction helps.
And…we must have more cycle lanes and paths locally.

[Report this comment as inappropriate]

You need to log in before you can do that! It's only a quick registration process to join the AMA network and completely free.