Your daily commute to and from work (using conventional methods) can put a massive dent in your efforts to lower your carbon footprint. Depending on what you do, choosing to work from home might not be an option. There, however, are plenty of ways you can make your commutes eco-friendly. This can be anything from using greener routes or a different green mode of transport. Outlined below are a few tips for greener commutes.
- Adjust Your Work Hours
Today, many companies (and employers) allow their employees to choose preferred work hours. This means you can adjust your work hours to when you are most productive but have less carbon footprint. Many employers won’t mind you working at odd hours for as long as the projects do not suffer and there’s constant communication.
Choosing flexible work hours means you only commute when there’s minimal traffic, reducing time and energy used to get to work. If commuting by car, it will consume less fuel and emit fewer gasses to the environment.
- Consider Public Transport
While driving yourself to work has its perks, you will be saving more money and the environment if you switch to public transport. If you live close to the train station or are on a route serviced by the public bus service, you could decide to make the switch. Using public transport will help you reduce your carbon footprint and provide a relaxing and stress-free way to work. You also don’t have to worry about getting stuck in traffic, and it offers the freedom and flexibility to work even from the bus or train on your way to or from work.
One thing about public transport is you have to be at the bus stop or train station on time. This can go a long way in giving your routine some structure too. Only use the car when necessary or need to run a few errands after work.
- Share A Ride with Coworkers
Car sharing is common among coworkers living in the same neighborhood or sharing a route. It involves using one car to get to work, where everyone has their day to drive. One of the advantages of this is that you get to save on gas and maintenance for your car. If 5 of you are carpooling, you only get to drive your vehicle once per week. This lowers your carbon footprint even further.
Ridesharing is a popular option too. This is particularly beneficial if using the taxi service. The main advantage of ride-sharing is you never have to drive nor adjust your work schedule or mode of transport. Like public transport, you can get some work done, or even rest on your way to or from work.
- Try Commuting by Bike
Biking is one of the best and most eco-friendly ways of commuting to work. However, this option is only feasible if you don’t live too far from your workplace. Nevertheless, e-bikes come with power assist feature that helps you zip to work effortlessly without breaking a sweat. Although you’d have to recharge the battery once in a while, your carbon footprint would be lower than if you were to drive a car on the same route. If your area gets plenty of sunshine and warmer, you can then choose to bike most of the days and only drive when you need to. There are also plenty of eco-friendly bikes on the market to choose from – the bamboo bike is the greenest of all.
- Consider Working For 4 Rather Than 5 Days
If your job involves working on projects and you are required to work 40 hours a week, condensing your workweek to 10 hours per day could see you save an entire day. This is because you’d be able to achieve the same results, but for fewer days. Unless you must attend critical meetings or deadlines every day, condensing your workload can save you a day’s worth of carbon footprint, hence good for the environment.
- Work From Home
The digital age has made it possible for most professionals to work from almost anywhere. All they need is the right equipment and high-speed internet. With many companies today using cloud-based software for work and file storage, there’s no reason you shouldn’t try working from home.
The ability to work remotely reduces/eliminates the need to commute every day to work. This can have a significant (positive) impact on the environment in the long run. In addition to this, you get to choose the best working hours for improved productivity and, most of all, spend time with your loved ones.
- Switch To A Greener Ride
If remote working or condensing your work isn’t an option, upgrading to a greener ride could help lower your carbon footprint. There are plenty of options to choose from, ranging from fully electric cars and hybrids to more fuel-efficient cars. If your car is more than 10 years old, switching to a newer, fuel-efficient, or electric car would be a wise move.
