Mike Waters' Blog: 28 July 2009 - A lack of options

Date: 29 July 2009

Mike Waters is head of market analysis at Arval

With the need to tackle carbon emissions becoming more critical every day, we are regularly told that driving is bad and that using your car will harm the environment. Well, yes it is, and yes we should try to limit car travel as much as possible, but in many cases and for many drivers there often isn't a practical alternative.

I use public transport fairly regularly and in my experience it can be unreliable, expensive and time consuming. This is obviously a big turn off to many drivers and especially those who need to travel on business. The Department for Transport has just released its carbon reduction strategy for transport. Lord Adonis talks about promoting more active modes of travel such as cycling but this throws up several impracticalities. For anyone who lacks the stamina of Lance Armstrong this is only practical for local journeys and even then if you are travelling to a business meeting its no good turning up sweaty, windswept and mud splattered.

With greenhouse gas emissions from transport representing 21 per cent of total UK domestic emissions there is no denying that we must all do our bit, but people are not going to change their behaviour if they aren't presented with practical alternatives. To be fair the government's strategy does include information on moving to lower emitting cars, providing guidelines to ensure those that need to drive can do so in a cleaner way.

Generally, cars provide flexibility, comfort and relative economy and the government must come up with an alternative that is as effective. The government's strategy advocates rail travel, singling out the need for a high-speed rail line between London and the West Midlands, as well as further electrification of the rail network. In some ways, they are absolutely right to do so. For longer business trips the obvious choice is train travel but at this moment in time who wants to spend a fortune buying a ticket, at the risk of having to stand in a crowded carriage at peak time, or deal with delays, if driving is a clear alternative.

The last thing I want to do is discourage drivers from reducing their carbon footprint because it is essential that we all take this seriously. The point that I'm making is that in many instances the car remains the best alternative and the government may not ever be able to change that. But while the car often makes sense, there are sometimes alternatives that are just as good, so I urge you not to be discouraged by the failings in public transport, think about your modal choice and the most efficient way to make your journey.

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