Our Tips On How To Make Every Car Journey A More Sustainable One
Many of us find ourselves feeling guilty for driving knowing that the carbon we emit isn’t great for the planet. But what if we told you that it is easy to make every drive more sustainable whether you are driving to a friend for the weekend, to the next city or on a long journey across the country. These are our top tips on how to travel more consciously and lessen your impact on the planet.
- Pack some snacks and drinks before you set off
When going away it’s always nice to have a pit stop to stretch your legs and get some food and drink, but the reality is that most on the go snacks come in single-use plastic. In 2018 we produced over 150 million tonnes of single-use plastic. This means we created more than 750 million tonnes of carbon. That’s a huge amount and the more we support businesses that produce plastic the more they are not going to change! Before setting off on your trip, we recommend packing a sustainable and reusable water bottle. Then take some sneaky snacks and some sandwiches! This won’t only help the planet but your wallet as well! 😅
2. Offset your carbon
Where is your next staycation? Is it in a hotel? Or a treehouse? Who knows! But what we do know is that the excitement starts when the journey begins. That’s why we wanted to provide you with a hassle-free solution to making your drive carbon-negative from the get-go. All you have to do is click ‘drive’ on the SKOOT app, start driving and we plant a tree. That’s it — carbon offset. With such an easy solution there is really no excuse for us all not to be countering the carbon we emit — plus it’s free!
4. Driving safely is the start of being more sustainable.
One of the easiest ways to make your journey more sustainable is all to do with you as a driver. When you don’t speed not only are you protecting your and your passengers’ lives but you are using less fuel and emitting less carbon into the atmosphere. When cruising down longer roads make sure you have your cruise control on as staying at a constant speed will fuel consumption meaning less carbon will be produced!
Extra tip — if you close your windows when driving on the highways, you have to consume less petrol because your vehicle is more efficient.
5. Share a lift with friends
There are occasions where groups of friends are meeting at the same location and all make their way there separately. Would it have been possible to share a ride with more people and limit the number of cars on the roads travelling to the same place? Not only does this reduce congestion but it significantly minimises the amount of carbon produced. Plus, how much better are road trips with big groups of you singing along to your fave tracks and delving into other people’s snacks!
5. Know the eco stance of your destination
Before leaving it might be worth checking if your destination is eco-conscious. Many more hotels are slowly making their way to being more sustainable. For example by letting you sign a form to say you don’t need your bed sheets changed every day. This is only one step, and we are in a race against global warming. We need to step up our game! When going away to eco-friendly hotels they will have systems in place to make sure they are re-using as much as possible! There are even destinations that are completely off the grid, without power, could be romantic… Be sure to check out SKOOT blog all about eco-friendly hotels.
3. Keep a sustainable bag in your car
When going out you never know when you might need a bag. It could be because you are quickly whizzing into the shop or running a couple of errands. You never know what a journey may hold! By keeping a reusable bag in the back of your car you won’t have to worry about what to carry your items in. Plastic bags can take 1,000 years to decompose but unfortunately they never really go, as they turn into microplastics that absorb toxins and continue to pollute the environment. So next time you go out make sure you have a bag! Sadly, they may not be as cool as the SKOOT Errands bags! 😉
We challenge you to try and make at least one change next time you go on a journey or even just a quick drive. We think you should start with offsetting your carbon. We’re giving away 1 Million Free Trees to make your journeys carbon-negative too, so you have no excuses. We all live on the same planet, and there is no planet B so we need to treat it with more care. Remember it’s better for all of us to make a conscious effort rather than a few doing it perfectly!
