Page 4 - ES Summer 2 Newsletter 2022
P. 4
Transport Why are the numbers so high?
How can we explain the increase in that’s moving food and products to
vehicles and distance that they travel, the shops we visit, or goods that are
Transport, travel, and Average Person’s Carbon Footprint and why the carbon footprint of bought online that’s delivered to our
commuting is a part of transport is so high? Well, our lifestyles homes. Think about how frequently
our daily lives. Whether are likely quite different to how they you see a delivery van on a road near
it’s for school, work, were a few decades ago. Many more you these days!
or leisure, our busy families now have more than one car With improvements to the road
lives often mean that Everything Travel per household. This is possibly because network, many people are prepared
we travel to numerous Else people need to travel further for work to travel further for work and for days
places throughout the or because different members of the out and holidays than they might
week. Very often, we Home and household need separate transport. have been a generation ago, which all
rely on vehicles powered Accommodation A generation ago, 70% of children contributes to those road miles racking
by fossil fuels to travel. walked to school. Now, just 44% of up.
Food
A long-term problem children in Wales travel to
with using fossil fuels school actively by walking,
is the amount of cycling, or scooting. This could
greenhouse gases, be because parents feel it is
mainly in the form of The number of cars on the roads safer to drive to school than
Carbon Dioxide, that are emitted into continue to increase, with 39 million allow children to walk, they
our atmosphere through burning them vehicles on UK roads in 2021 compared might not feel they have time
in our engines. These greenhouse gases to 25 million in 1994. In 2018, there to walk to school or it could
act as a blanket to trap in the sun’s heat were over 1.5 million of these vehicles be that children need to travel
which then causes change to the world’s licensed in Wales. further to their nearest school
climate. than a generation ago.
According to the Department for
Transport within the UK is responsible Transport, kilometres travelled by Another reason could be
for 27% of the greenhouse gases cars, vans and taxis steadily increased the increase in demand for
produced in the country, and around from 139 billion passenger kilometres goods that we buy, whether
half of those are generated by the in 1960, to 738 billion passenger
manufacture of cars and the fuel they kilometres in 2019. That’s over five
use. In fact, 2016 saw domestic transport times more!
overtake energy as the most greenhouse
gas emitting sector in the UK.
Gellifaelog Primary School’s Walking Bus
