Create a Transportation Plan (page 2 of 2)

More Ways to Get Around

• Sell extra cars. If you've been hanging on to a second or third vehicle for those rare occasions when you truly "need" it as a spare or for carrying cargo, reconsider your position. Think of the money you'll save on insurance, registration, parking, and maintenance by renting a car a few times a year instead. Or get the neighbors together to buy a "community" pickup truck for heavy cargo needs, then stick with a fuelefficient vehicle the rest of the time.
  
  
• Drive a hybrid. These amazing cars come with huge tax incentives from state and federal government bodies, save you tons on gas, and can cut emissions by half. Go to HybridCars.com to look up all the incentives available to you.
  
  
• Avoid buying an SUV. Sport utility vehicles are attractive and popular, but if you're interested in safety, they aren't good choices. The sense of safety and security driving an SUV may give you is often deceptive. SUVs are prone to rollovers, in which the occupants are three times more likely to be killed than are occupants of cars, and collisions of SUVs and cars account for the majority of fatalities in vehicle-on-vehicle accidents. Plus, with far fewer miles to the gallon, SUVs guzzle gas and foreign oil, cost more at the pump, and emit far more toxic emissions into the air than traditional cars.
  
  
• Bike to work. Toxic vehicle emissions and human obesity rates are skyrocketing, but you can reduce air pollution -- and your waistline -- by bicycling to the office. Any cyclist will tell you biking is fun and healthy and makes parking a dream. National Bike to Work Week is May 15–19. Take advantage of the warmer weather and extra daylight and give cycling a shot next May -- or sooner!
  
  
• Take public transportation. Hopping on the subway or bus is a great way to avoid the stress of traffic and the noxious carcinogens you breathe while sitting in gridlock. When you're on the train or bus, you can read the newspaper or catch up on paperwork on the way to work, saving you time. Besides, walking, even just to and from the station or bus stop, is a great way to start your morning.

Whether the goal is to reduce the number of weekly trips made by car, get a more efficient and safer car, or take the plunge and go car-free, each of us can make a big difference by streamlining our transportation choices.

From For America

 

• Going Green
• Better America

• How to Fix America's Energy Crisis
• How french fries and nukes will bring power to the people.
• 
• Dig Deeper: Fuel Alternatives
• What to check out if you're considering fuel alternatives.
• 
• Are You an Eco Hero?
• 
• In Our Hands
• Simple ways we can all be champions of the earth.
• 
• Energy Savings Strategy
• 8 Steps to lower your gas and electric bills.
• 
• View the complete America 2.0 poll results.
• 

• Be Inspired
• Meet a 12-Year-Old Making a Difference
• Help Prevent Teen Car Crashes
• Meet 6 Incredible Individuals
• PLUS:
• Quiz: Match the Celebrity With the Cause

Wondering why my niece, Charlotte, was returning to college to get a master's in philosophy, I asked, "What can you do with a degree like that?" "Well," she explained, "it will qualify me to deal with questions like, 'What is existence?' 'What is the essence of things?' and 'Do you want fries with that?' "

-- Mel Loftus, Holmen, Wis.