7 Reasons To Go Car Free
As today is World Car Free Day, we give you 7 reasons to ditch the car…
1. Less air pollution
Unless you are driving an electric vehicle, your car will be producing harmful gases that are damaging to the environment and are directly adding to the effects of climate change. One medium car running on petrol produces 192g of CO2e every kilometre, going car free will prevent harmful gases from being released.
2. Less noise pollution
Cars are noisy, especially from the exhaust pipe. Taking cars off the road would lower this amount of noise and create a much quieter environment. This means that it will be much easier to hear the sounds of nature such as birds singing instead of listening to the droning hum of car engines.
3. Less traffic
Less cars equal less traffic. This means there will be lower amounts of traffic jams and road rage. Traffic can cause large amounts of stress, if you opt to walk you can walk past all the traffic. Less traffic will also mean you will be able to see the beauty of an area instead of looking at a long queue of cars.
4. Safer
Having less cars on the road means that the areas we live in will become safer, for those who drive and those that don’t. For those that drive, if you choose to go car free there is an instantly decreased chance that you won’t be in a car accident on the road. For those that don’t drive the removal of cars on the road lowers the risk of a vehicle related incident, making it much safer for pedestrians and those that cycle.
5. Public transport is much more sustainable
Public transport has a number of ways that make it sustainable, including less congestion, less noise, reduced traffic and is better for our mental well-being. Opting to go car free and using public transport can lower your own carbon footprint.
See our article ’11 Benefits of using Public Transport’ for more reasons for why you should opt for public transport and go car free.
6. Increases the need for better active transport infrastructure
If people stopped using their cars and opted for a more active way to travel, such as walking and cycling, there would be an increased need for local councils to improve the infrastructure needed for these ways to travel. As there would be an increase in the need for wider pavements and more bike lanes.
7. More space for living
Roads take over a large part of our environment, less cars on the road would mean that the spaces these roads take up could be used for greener spaces. This includes parks, squares and places where communities can get together. Roads, in both rural and urban areas can destroy biodiversity, if we bring back greener spaces the biodiversity of these areas have a chance to thrive again.
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