Not only is this false, but it causes accidents, traffic jams, costs more in petrol, leaves us feeling stressed, and could dramatically increase emissions from road transport.
I discovered this personally when I bought a car several years ago. At the time I bought it, the dashboard politely informed me that I was achieving 43 MPG. It was supposed to be an economical car getting much more than this, so I decided to test what would happen if I changed my driving habits. I began to leave more distance between me and the car in front. I left enough space so that I rarely had to brake because I was far enough back that just lifting my foot off the accelerator meant I didn’t have to. I also minimised accelerating when I could see that I needed to slow down or stop. Before a junction or traffic lights, for example. After implementing these changes, within a few weeks, my MPG shot up to 58 – an extra 15 miles per gallon.
Act today, benefit straight away
Next journey you do, give it a try, and notice if you feel less stressed when you drive as a result. If this doesn’t motivate you to carry on, then think about the money and emissions you’re saving to help keep you on the right track...
Using UK stats as an indication, the average driver would save around £250 a year in petrol (and even more through preventing extra wear and tear on the car). It would also reduce road casualties, and decrease emissions by as much as 15%. (footprintcalculator.org). That means this driving change could save over 16.5 million tonnes of CO2 per year in the UK alone. And, as the average person’s footprint for driving (a petrol car) is 2.8 tonnes, shaving 15% off would reduce your personal footprint by a whopping 0.42 tonnes of CO2.
