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Heartening piece on R4 today comparing the environmental friendliness of various modes of transport. It seems that because the number of bus passengers averages only about nine, a car with two occupants is actually a better bet. Of course, the bus will still be running, but it's not the line we usually get from the Greenies. I gather that similar arithmetic applies to trains...
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It really comes down to where you draw the boundaries of comparison. [ Lies, damned lies, and statistics etc.] Some years ago, a private group wanted to build and run a TGV-based train on the Sydney - Melbourne route, and argued that it was "greener" than the other common forms of transport on that busy corridor. They compared fuel input to move x number of people over that run by aircraft, [ the normal method ], car, long-haul diesel coach, and their train. Of couse, the train was best. Then thinking that it would be even better, they looked at the total energy input from the "hole-in-the-ground" [ oil well, coal mine ] to wheels. Regrettably for the investors, the diesel coach won hands-down.
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What a load of crap. Go into places like Manchester, London and Nottingham and just see how many buses there are which are full. I have been using buses again the past couple of weeks due to an injury and they are nearly always full, if it is quiet it is half full, so that is 40 people.
Sounds like sombody is trying to justify their existance of a V8 Range Rover to me.
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In Glasgow, outwith peak times, buses are empty, certainly never more than 1/4 full in the city centre, dropping off significantly the further out you go from the centre.
That's a lot of miles all day every day with only a couple of folks on board.
On the plus side, i always get to choose the best seat... kinda makes up for not having a comfy seat and my choice on the temperature control!
Wouldn't travel during peak times on a bus though -- even though they must run 3x the number of buses, they're all jam packed!
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"What a load of crap"
It wasn't a motoring programme, it was a numbers one: 'More or Less' which is here...
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00pr8bc
The figures came from DEFRA - make of that what you will!
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According to one recent newspaper article the worst offenders are cows!
"Meet the world's top destroyer of the environment. It is not the car, or the plane,or even George Bush: it is the cow.
A United Nations report has identified the world's rapidly growing herds of cattle as the greatest threat to the climate, forests and wildlife. And they are blamed for a host of other environmental crimes, from acid rain to the introduction of alien species, from producing deserts to creating dead zones in the oceans, from poisoning rivers and drinking water to destroying coral reefs.
The 400-page report by the Food and Agricultural Organisation, entitled Livestock's Long Shadow, also surveys the damage done by sheep, chickens, pigs and goats. But in almost every case, the world's 1.5 billion cattle are most to blame. Livestock are responsible for 18 per cent of the greenhouse gases that cause global warming, more than cars, planes and all other forms of transport put together.
Burning fuel to produce fertiliser to grow feed, to produce meat and to transport it - and clearing vegetation for grazing - produces 9 per cent of all emissions of carbon dioxide, the most common greenhouse gas. And their wind and manure emit more than one third of emissions of another, methane, which warms the world 20 times faster than carbon dioxide.
Livestock also produces more than 100 other polluting gases, including more than two-thirds of the world's emissions of ammonia, one of the main causes of acid rain.
Ranching, the report adds, is "the major driver of deforestation" worldwide, and overgrazing is turning a fifth of all pastures and ranges into desert.Cows also soak up vast amounts of water: it takes a staggering 990 litres of water to produce one litre of milk.
Wastes from feedlots and fertilisers used to grow their feed overnourish water, causing weeds to choke all other life. And the pesticides, antibiotics and hormones used to treat them get into drinking water and endanger human health.
The pollution washes down to the sea, killing coral reefs and creating "dead zones" devoid of life. One is up to 21,000sqkm, in the Gulf of Mexico, where much of the waste from US beef production is carried down the Mississippi.
The report concludes that, unless drastic changes are made, the massive damage done by livestock will more than double by 2050, as demand for meat increases."
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Some peoples homes have become over- run with bedbugs - and the situation has become `normal` to them. They can transfer from coat to seat, to coat on a bus (or coat to coat) - with the new `host` not becoming aware until sometime after and never realizing where they were picked up.
(I`ve worked with people who have become normalized to infestation in this way and have had conversations with environmental heath)
The private motor car is great.
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Good point oilrag.
If we all had to use public transport the number of days off sick per year would rocket. Sitting on a crowded bus or train with everyone's germs buzzing round looking for new homes would have us all sniveling and sneezing for a good part of the year.
Long live the car.
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Whenever I go on a bus I always choose a seat with no seat behind me or say the side seat at right angles to the driver. No chance of any moron sneezing or coughing over me.
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On the Enviro 400's I always sit on the front seat above the front wheels if I can. I do this for two reasons
1) I am out of the way of all the great unwashed.
2) It is entertaining watching all the plebs and unwashed argue with the bus driver over 20p.
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Rattle, I'm a little surprised by your comment. I did not realise that you were a member of the upper class.
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I use public transport all the time and always will do. My comment was that you often get tramps and chavs causing problems which just spoils the experience. 90% of bus users are ordinary hard work people with good jobs just getting to work or using their free over 60's bus pass but its the 10% that spoil things.
I believe in the entire package, car use is essential but it dosn't mean every journey you take should be by car.
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Petrolheads should love buses too! That double-decker in front with 80 passengers on board probably contains 20-40 people who could have been driving their cars instead, clogging up the road even more.
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Exactly but oh no the bus has to be the best hated thing since a disgraced pop singer.
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