Image by Carlo Nicora via Flickr
Everyone agrees that the world is becoming an alarmingly polluted place: whether you are a proponent of global warming or a skeptic, that simple fact is impossible to deny. One of the greatest culprits of air pollution is out of control automobile driving. Here are some steps every day people can take to reduce their own contributions to this dire dilemma.
Drive a smaller car and drive less
Bigger does not always mean better, and that adage holds true for automobiles. In the last ten years, Americans have indulged themselves by buying huge cars when a smaller one could have done just as well for their needs. The recent drastic upswing in gasoline prices shocked consumers into realizing that the gas-guzzling "tanks" they were so fond of were really not practical. Although that realization was largely economically-based, it will have positive environmental consequences in the long run.
Driving a smaller, more fuel-efficient car means that you will use less fuel to go the same distances and thereby reduce harmful emissions. You will be saving money as well as cutting down on harmful pollution. Consolidate your errands so that you are not making frequent small trips, and walk or ride a bike whenever possible. We are often extravagant in using a car for situations that really don't call for it.
Carpool or use public transit
The mass migration of families to the suburbs and away from business centers naturally led to a huge increased in commuting over the last 60 or more years. By nature, people like to have the freedom to drive themselves to work and perhaps take care of some errands later.
Unfortunately, car poolers are few and far between in many urban centers. Make a conscious effort to form a car pool group with co-workers who live in your area or forego driving altogether in favor of taking the bus or rail at least once or twice a week. If every citizen committed themselves to such a plan, the number of harmful car emissions would be drastically reduced.
Choose hybrid cars
If you make frequent business trips, always seek out rental companies that offer hybrid cars. The number of hybrid cars on the road today is doing very little to cut down on overall levels of emissions. But if more people demand, buy, or rent such automobiles, the reduction in the amount of car pollution in the world will be significant.
You can make a difference by choosing wisely: if you'd like to rent a hybrid vehicle for your next trip, contact Hybrid-Car-Rental.com (http://www.hybrid-car-rental.com). Art Gib is a freelance writer.
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