• commuting report
• employer rankings
• buy transit vouchers
• buy carbon offsets
• CommutingGreen Store

Individuals can help make a difference - cleaner air starts with responsibility

What Can You Do?

Join the more than 14,000,000 individuals who have already taken major strides toward reducing their carbon dioxide emissions. A majority of individuals have either made the switch from driving their vehicle alone to work to riding public transit, carpooling, car-sharing, upgrading to hybrid vehicles, purchasing carbon offsets for their cars, and biking/walking to work.

Transit

Public transit ridership has grown by 25% since 1995. A majority of commuters (81%) agree that offering commuter benefits demonstrates environmental leadership, due to reduced traffic congestion, air pollution and energy savings. As an individual, your voice can be heard by urging your employer to take action. Individuals AND employers can even save money in the process. Individuals can save up to 40% on their transit costs by having the employer purchase transit vouchers on their behalf. Employers would save about 10% by purchasing the vouchers and deducting the amount from their payroll. The deduction is made pre-tax, meaning the employer saves because of lower payroll taxes. The employer can also purchase the transit vouchers as a subsidy to help individuals pay for their transit costs. The cost of the vouchers are considered a deductible business expense. It pays to be heard! Purchase transit vouchers here.

Offsets

For those individuals who simply cannot avoid driving to work alone, a growing popular solution to neutralize one's emissions from their vehicle is to purchase carbon offsets. Carbon offsets reduce carbon dioxide emissions by sponsoring clean air projects that balance or neutralize a certain amount of a person's carbon footprint. For example, the average car produces roughly 10,000 pounds of CO2 per year. With a carbon offset, a portion of a project such as renewable energy with wind, biodiesel, biomass and industrial efficiency, reduces the need for 10,000 pounds of CO2 in one year, balancing out the car's carbon emissions. Purchase carbon offsets here.

Alternative methods

Another growing number of individuals have likened the ideas of reducing CO2 emissions by alternative methods. Carpooling, for instance is a great way to save money on tolls, parking fees, and time by utilizing the carpool lane on the highway. Car-sharing numbers have grown on a yearly basis by third-party administrators offering more vehicles in more metropolitan areas for individuals to share. One car-share company has estimated they have taken roughly 25,000 vehicles off the road and saving their members on average $5,232 per year. Many individuals have seen the dramatic effects of upgrading to hybrid vehicles. Hybrid vehicles produce 80% less harmful greenhouse gases than gasoline powered vehicles. The difference in gasoline costs is roughly $3500. Not bad. Last but not least is the most healthy of all transportation methods: biking or walking to work. Those individuals who choose to ditch their vehicle for the more environmentally beneficial method of biking or walking to work will save approximately $7,800 compared to driving to work alone. Significant savings there!

Return to homepage