Charlotte-area commuters log 1,000 more miles a year and urbanites use public transit half as much as average Americans, says an analysis by the Natural Resources Defense Council.
That pattern means local commuters spend some $350 more a year on driving than most Americans, says the analysis of National Household Travel Survey data.
The NRDC's point in all this, of course, is that drivers could save money -- and carbon emissions -- by using transit, carpooling and combining trips more often. Urban commuters in the Charlotte area could save $931 and rural residents $2,163 a year if they took transit, it found.
Shannon Binns, executive director of the nonprofit Sustain Charlotte, said "it is critical that we expand our transit system while also encouraging more carpooling, telecommuting, and moving closer to work, if possible."
In that vein, officials broke ground Thursday for the Lynx Blue Line light-rail extension from uptown to UNC Charlotte. The 9.3-mile line is expected to open in 2017.
Friday, July 19, 2013
Charlotte commuters drive more than most Americans
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2 comments:
I would take pub transit but from Matthews to UNCC it is a 1.5 hour bus ride through the uptown transit center.
If there were better, cheaper, safer, and more reliable options for commuters it would be a different story. Right now there isn't any other way than to clog up the (horribly designed) interstates every day.
I hope that the Lynx Blue Line will help some, but I unfortunately don't think it will have much of an effect. The problem with it is getting to the line itself (in a safe neighborhood to leave your car).
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