New Job Saves Carbon

I have been at my new job for six weeks now (and am loving it!). In my old job I had to commute 52 miles south five days a week and 52 miles back north to get home (with occasional trips to Boston, another 92 miles each way). My wife meanwhile commuted 50 miles east every morning with a return trip back each night. Together we put over 200 miles on our cars every day!

I was able to cut my carbon output in the summer by riding my Kymco Scooter which gets 75 mpg. Of course, if it was raining or after September that option was out. It works out that between the two of us we used about 45 gallons of gas a week (my car gets about 25 and hers 20).

Well with the new job I now go to almost the same place as she does (4 miles apart) so we have been driving my car and riding together almost every day. We also discovered a back road route that only takes 10 minutes more in driving but is 10 miles shorter (plus we drive slower and now get 27 mpg on my car!). Our fuel consumption has dropped to only 15 - 16 gallons a week! That's 30 gallons less and a lot less carbon.

So why this rant? Well, it's about that old idea, car pooling. What ever happened to car pooling? It works and it saves. Granted my wife an I are the perfect couple for car pooling but still, why not resurrect the program for car pooling but this time put some teeth into it. Maybe make it a state program with tax incentives? Why not offer a special speed pass/ fast lane that lets car poolers ride free on toll roads?

Car pooling is not easy, it takes effort to find someone, to coordinate every day with car use, etc. but it could make a tremendous difference.