Train or car share?

We are lucky to have regular trains with connection to the main line network from some parts of Harrogate District. This is good news because using public transport can massively help us to reduce our carbon footprints! For each mile you travel on your own this is roughly what your emissions will be:

• standard class on the train = 80g 0f CO2

• mid-sized 5-door electric car = 180g of CO2

• average UK car = 530g of CO2

• bigger and sportier cars = up to a whopping 1.26kg per mile!

If you car share you can divide the total emissions by the number of passengers to work out your emissions per person. This means an electric car with 3 or 4 passengers would have lower emissions per person than the train. If you don't live near a train station, you could work out whether your emissions are lower when you car share for the full journey or drive yourself to the station before catching the train. Wherever in the district you live, it is always helpful to consider how best to reduce your personal and business emissions from travel - because we can make a difference!

Transport accounts for almost half of all carbon emissions in Harrogate District (BEIS, 2019).

Per mile figures taken from "How Bad Are Bananas" by Mike Berners-Lee (2019).

Photo of train on Knaresborough viaduct from Gerard Binks.