大象传媒

I gave up driving and my car over 2 years ago-I just found it too stressful-but I thought -the answer is to have taxis. this year I have substantially cut down my taxis and (being retired) have adjusted to the slower pace of life. I get buses-go most places by bus. Occasionally I will have a lift from a friend to get to somewhere difficult to get to. the railways always have been my friend. Long journeys I go by train and if I can't get to it easily I don't go. I feel guilty however that I am travelling to my son's wedding in Spain by air. Oh dear. I feel now I might take a different choice but the air ticket has been booked some time.

Incidentally I took advantage of a Government grant in the summer to have my loft insulation vastly improved. I had one inch-I now have 12 inches!!! I am amazed at the difference it has made to the warmth of the house and strongly recommend it.True I live in a terrace house but I am having the central heating on remarkably littler. True it has been mild but I know what my house used to be like.-

I would really like to have one of those heat loss tests done on my house.And of course I have energy saving bulbs-had to go to B and Q to get the equivalent of 100 watt.

I also buy my meat now from my local butcher- his meat is all reared locally -it is much better than supermarket meat and the animals have not had to travel miles and so transport is saved. There are other benefits too. I have invested in one of those trolleys to carry shopping so i can go to the butcher and market to buy my vegetables-again as many as poss grown locally-again saving on transport costs.And it's much nicer.A supoermarket shop gets done on a different day.

I recommend a more ethical way of life to all-I've a long way to go but I've made a good start.

Vicky Murray.

And yes I do have double glazing -I've put that in.

Great. I think a lot of people would love to get rid of a money munching object such as a car. The key though, is in the location.You must be well served by public transport and not live in the wilds of Aberdeenshire with one stagecoach a week passing a mile from your door.
The solution, to help our Aberdeenshire pockets and your environment, would be for all of us Northerners to put our cars to the crushers, and replace them with cars provided by all you - well served by public transport - Southern types, for 20 Euros.

What a load of tosh. I remember when I was an apprentice in the 60's. I could not afford the bus fare for the 5mile treck to work and back. After a long hard day lifting engines in and out I had to pedal up hill and down dale in the pouring rain and snow. As for social life you don't want to know. Then I got an old banger and life changed for me more than I can describe. The freedom it gave me and my girlfriend was on another plain. It was worth the 3 shillings and 4 pence a gallon when a pint of beer was 1 shilling. If every one gave up their car today there would be industrial caos the country would grind to a halt in days no hours. Lets just try it and put paid to the daft notion.

The key phrase in your blog is "I live in Central London". Try spending a month without a car in Milton Keynes or a small village in Oxfordshire. I think your opinion of giving up the car maybe be different.

Well done. I've been carless for 15 years (nearly half a life) and it's no problem at all. I've been able to do all the normal stuff (eating; mating; DIY) and I'm no pariah for it.

The ease comes from the sum of choices. If the place is good then you won't want to drive. If you support the local services (especially food/schools/public transport) then you won't have to drive. Cycling helps, as does campaigning to keep essential services from infilling with luxury flat developments. Walking is healthy and, if shared with a loved one, give a fabulous opportunity to talk. Win win, really.

The bad news is that poverty makes those choices much harder.

I have lived in London and can confirm that you can live without a car without disrupting your life. However when I moved back to South Wales I discovered that a car is a necessary evil. The public transport here is not good enough to replace it. In my areas you'd be unable to go out after 7 p.m. Until the government and local authorities provide a good, clean, reliable and safe alternative the car will be king.

Ethical Man posted: "I鈥檇 love to be able to report that we鈥檝e suffered terribly without the car. I鈥檇 love to be able to relate how my marriage is on the verge of ruin, how my children are isolated and lonely and how my social life has collapsed. Sadly that just wouldn鈥檛 be true."

You'd love to? No wonder Bee feels a need to comment!

I'm wondering how she gets those needed extra bottles of milk you mention, when you're at work until late and there are small children at home.

You perhaps should mention that that the 大象传媒 provides cars for work as needed.

I did the same maths and reached the same conclusion more than 15 years ago. I use a taxi about once a fortnight, and rent a car about four days a year. But the failings of public transport do restrict one's possiblities, and I'm not certain how "green" taxis and public transport actually are, especially compared ot how they could be. Perhaps since you have chosen to use more public transport you could look into that? Why are taxis and buses all still diesel, and apparently without exhaust filters? What generates the power for the railways these days?

The lack of baggage handling on railways, and the poor (or non-existent) public transport at festival / holiday times are big barriers. As are poor connections and other inconveniences, like early "last trains". Using a train to return home from a dinner, play, concert, or political meeting in London is rarely possible, and that's an unnecessary barrier to community involvement.

Do you have teenagers?
I grew up in a family without a car & we managed quite well, but during my teenage years I sometimes felt terrible because my parents never took their share of the pick-ups....I'd go to my friends house for the evening and her mum would have to bring me home. My friend would come to my house and her mum would have to pick her up...public transport is not really safe for young girls late at night.
On the up side, during daylight hours at least, I became independent earlier than most of my piers.
Now I live in Rual East Texas where there's no hope of surviving without a car & everyone drives huge cars so it's really quite dangerous to drive anything that gets a good mpg ratio. Plus, do you know how long it takes to get from Dallas to Houston driving 55mph?

Isn't the argument that it's impossible to get rid of the car if you don't live in a big city self-defeating?

My parents live in a tiny village, 4 miles from the nearest town, that is served by buses between 7am and 4.30pm.

If half of the village got rid of their cars. What would happen?

The car-less would put pressure on the local council and their MP to increase services, run buses for longer hours more frequently and meet commuter trains. Local businesses would second with additional pressure for buses to service the main supermarkets and shopping centre, meet theatre, cinema, pub & club closing times. How many more buses would be running by the end of the year?

Unforunately it's all hypothetical. It's like a queue in an un-tried dentists surgery. It might stop a great deal of pain, but no one wants to be the first!

Well done and all that... but there are train services from London to all sorts of places (including Dorset) you know!

I have never driven since I got the ethical bug in my teens ( some time ago ). I cycled everywhere or used public transport.
I now live in a quiet village in the middle of nowhere and do I miss not having a car ? - No. There is a bus service every ninety minutes and you adjust to it. And the beauty of it is - the driver is a regular who knows all his passengers - bus stops are irrelevent as the driver picks you up anywhere safe and drops you as near to your destination as possible.
Anything bulky or difficult to move is delivered - and usually next day.
The waste collection is set up for recycling nnd there is a real sense of community.
It can be done it just needs some initiative.

Even by the 大象传媒's standards of absence of journalistic rigour, tonight's ethicial man item was insulting to the intelligence of the viewer. Why does the 大象传媒 (for which viewers pay) see it to be its role to offer unqualified support to the environmentalist myth of the impact man made carbon dioxide?. No doubt if the subject of this charade had found that he could not do without his car,as many people who inhabit the real world as opposed to the fabricated world of 大象传媒 journalism cannot, the experiment would not have seen the light of day. Even if you believe the aforesaid myth, why does not the 大象传媒 make any reference to the absolute futility of the gesture of the family in question in the face of the acceleration of production of carbon dioxide by China and India?

A year or so ago, my car was vandalised to such an extent that it could not be economically repaired. I spent the insurance money on a bottle of gin and took to the buses. OK for me, an old lady going shopping in south-east London, where the transport infrastructure is reasonable? - but there on the buses I met Reality. I soon learnt not to go out when the schools were let out and the screaming multitudes rushed aboard and made an impenetrable barrier round the way out. But there on the buses were young mothers who either could not afford a car or their husbands had driven to work in the only one available. They were festooned with fractious children, trying to cope with shopping bags, and just about at the end of their tether. Being ethical is OK if it's a considered decision, but these women hadn't chosen that particular torment and I don't seen why anyone should be holier than thou about it.

If it's a salve to Ethical Man's (and wife's) conscience, fine. However, I would like to know where he stands on aviation, for example.

All his good work for ditching his car for the whole year would be undone by just one flight (on his own) to anywhere in Europe. The public transport argument also will not hold weight even 10 miles outside of London. It is slow, prone to breakdown and ruinously expensive.

Ditching the car is simply not an option to millions of people.

It would have been a better to suggest that by replacing all the incandescent light bulbs in your home for energy saving ones, turn down the thermostat and drive sympathetically. This is not an expensive option for millions of people and saves money.

In one year, the energy saved by doing this would allow a family to run one small diesel car (bio-diesel of course) for almost 6,000 miles a year. This would be eminently more practical for the vast majority of people living in the UK.

There are many, many other options that can be considered, running the old mantra 'car bad, car bad' isn't neccessarily so.

It's all a little disingenuous really and smacks of environmental tokenism and one-upmanship.

Nice idea; if I lived in London, I'd do it. Intrigued by the idea, I just did an internet search to try and find a car pool near me. It was 30 miles away. So it seems I'll have to stay with my own car. Wouldn't it be nice if we had a transport system that extended beyond major cities?

Well bully for you. I am becoming tired of the sanctimonious blathering of a well paid reporter living in central London preaching about how "ethical" he is. Try living in the real world for a while instead of the luvvie life of London media. You people and your "holier than thou" attitudes fill me with contempt. So, you sold your Saab for 20 euros did you? And you are actually proud of that? You could afford the car in the first place and are in a position to right off that money without a thought as to where that money might have done a bit more good. "I sold my car for 20 euros" how patronising can you get?

I did this myself about 15 years ago. and , yes it does save you a packet in more ways than one. That 拢3000 that wasnt spent would have needed around 拢4500 to 拢5000 in gross earnings to spend in the first place! so it if you earnt 拢4500 less you could probably spend more time with the kids!I currently couldnt do without the cars (yes cars..) as the 3M cycle ride on the school run is just not viable from a safety standpoint. If the local state school had been any good we could have walked in.bad school system therefore has a direct environmental effect.
The one car is small and used as much as possible, the other rather larger and used less.I drive as little as possible, not least because it is soooo boring, i'm 100yards from the roundabout and even I can see nothing is coming but the dollop on the roundabout stops to have a look.more braking more gear changes , bad road observation has an environmental effect also. If you find driving at 70 easier than er a little faster then you must be asleep. The driving workload is far higher , and you spend a lot of time looking in the rear view mirror, because thats where all the traffic is coming from!
Has anybody done a study on the environmental effects of the non existent law enforcement. How many school runs, people picking other people up etc because its safer?
I like the car share idea though. Trouble is I really do have to be at places in a very short time , public transport doesnt usually do it for work purposes.I rarely drive into the Birmingham during the day though,so sometimes it works.

I am facing a terrible dilemma.

I have lived in London for more than 10 years and have never owned a car, relying on the tubes and busess to get around town and on the trains to make frequent visits to family outside London. I can't truthfully say that I was orginially motivated by environmantal concerns, more cost and the inconvenience of finding parking. Over time it also became a green issue and I was proud to not have a car.

Now I find that despite my home being about to become part of the expanded congestion charge zone, I am seriously considering buying a car. The problem is that I am increasingly scared to use public transport. It may sound silly but the buses are full of threatening groups of children who vandalise the top decks whilst playing loud music and daring you to say something let alone intervene. The trains are just as bad especially at night with drunks or gangs of youngsters. Following two murders in recent years I am increasingly nervous even walking from the station to my house.

I feel really humilated having to be scared of kids but nowadays they seem to be the biggest threat to personal safety especially when they hunt in packs!!!

I really want to be green but I have to feel safe and so public transport has to be properly policed.

Scrapping a running car is hardly environmentally friendly. Seems likely the car that was crushed was serviceable, with quite a few years of life in it (and the production of a new car takes a lot of energy).
Similarly, complaining about depreciation of a new car is a bit strange, when you could happily buy a 2nd hand car and let someone else take the depreciation.
Cars now seem to be worthless when they still have years of useful life in them.

Well done.

We have two cars and to give them up would mean one of us would have to give up there job the public transport in the area is ok but my wife works 30 miles away and the school run + Childminder run in the mornings + the afternoon pick ups the drop offs to the playcentre then back to work mean it is immpossiable to give up a car with out giving up work. that being said, during the late 80's early 90's i was very much on the side of the golbal warming division however now things have changed. I have looked at all the evidence and am not totally convinced. big Oil companys pay for reports saying theres no GW and Greenpeace/Friend of the earth pay for reports that say there is GW. The Stark report starts by say it assumes GW will happen yet 4 million years ago we had an Ice Age and there were no cars. Whilst there is an argument to say er what if..Oh well we will do it anyway. Im just not convinced. If the Government really thought GW was real they would tell the Car companys to only make Duel fuel cars. or make public transport into London free during rush hour rather that make it cheaper to drive. That said i do try to recycle as much as possiable, we have a waste disposal unit to reduce food waste and would have solor panels if planning permission was granted and they were a little cheaper. I personally do not buy anything i see advertised thus not personally contributing to the consumer culture (but the wife and kids are not as good) besides Advertising is just begging anyway.

You see we have had these kind of proven science before something everyone signs up for then is found to be rubbish. lets not forget Churchill belived in Eugenics yet that was a load of old Tosh.

I guess was i ans saying is just because a scientist says it is real does not mean it is, look at who funded his research first then make a judgement if the funding comes from a person who has a vestid
intrest in a particular result then it can be seen as biased there for flawed just look at the non-existant link between the MMR, Autisum and the bowl problem one study on less than 100 kids said yes and a scandanavian one on 1,000's of kids said no yet the media only picked the one to say there was a link.. a few weeks ago the doctor who the report saying there was a link i belive was struck off. again do not always belive what the media report is fact. i could go on but think you get the picture

I've got 20 quid in my wallet - you don't have another Saab you want to get rid of do you?

No way will I ever give up my car.

Yes, I'll recycle. Yes, I'll cut down the amount of energy and water I use. I will avoid unnecessary journeys and try to buy local produce.

But I cannot abide to sacrifice my independence. I despise my daily commute, crammed into a bus with dozens of other people with their noise and smells. Then trampling through a crowded station to wait on a freezing platform for a train.

On the occasions I am able to drive into the office I arrive relaxed and calm.

When I take the bus (and train) I arrived tired and stressed.

I will never give up my car.

Great work Rowlatt ! I got rid of my car years ago after having a couple of epileptic fits which meant I had to give back my driving licence for a while.

[Okay, the car went to my sister, so there is a bit of buck passing here..]

But though I got my licence back after a year I didn't get another car. I have no sympathy for people who say 'I simply couldn't live without a car'. For some people this may be the truth. But for most people living in towns they could adjust - and with climate change they will soon have to learn. Way to go, JR.

Most relevant points have been made but, It all seemed so 'naice'seeing the 'Waltons' cycling/walking during one of the warmest, dryest summers on record. Give us a report on how they cope, with a full load of shopping, and the kids crying with exhaustion, and while it is persisting down with rain or snow. Where I live, an unvandalised bus shelter with a roof, is regarded as desirable property. Hanging around in the dark and cold, waiting for the next bus ( that might not bother to turn up) is a race between it---and the local nutter's finding you! Even then, they might join you on board, and provide an uncalled-for cabaret of expletive's and threatening behaviour! YEP! I can't wait to get rid of my car, that loverly, reliable, comfy, warm friend. Oh look! I can see it out the window--just six feet away.

They may say "do the math" but do you have to encourage the use of this absurd americanism?

What about the real issue:

The diesel pollution from taxis, trains, buses, lorries, construction vehicles, and ships ... and, of course diesel cars.

(1) Diesel exhaust not only contributes to ozone formation and the production of fine particulates, it also is a global warmer. For example, in the US heavy-duty lorries alone emit around 400 million metric tons of heat-trapping gases annually, accounting for about 6 percent of US carbon emissions (this is a bit out of date - check the internet though you will be shocked at the amount).

(2) The cancer risk from diesel emissions is about ten times higher than the cancer risks from all other hazardous air pollutants combined. According to a study by the US Health Effects Institute, more than 98% of the particles emitted from diesel engines are fine particles, less than 1 micron in diameter. These are especially hazardous because they can bypass respiratory defence mechanisms and lodge deep in the lungs.

(3) Have a look on the internet to see how much more polluting diesel is (and contributable to the incidence of asthma and other respiratory conditions). Yet now it seems every other car on the road (not to mention all the other vehicles mentioned above) is a diesel.

(4) In myopinion, without government intervention, car manufacturers will have to make more and more diesel vehicles (or go out of business) because the misguided public are unwittingly buying them in their droves, believing they are being somehow more efficient.

(5) Diesel fuel is more expensive than petrol. But because the engine will in general return a slightly higher miles-per-gallon efficiency, our government is delighted to tax people to the hilt at the fuel pumps, as sales of diesel rise, while focusing on the usual soft target tax revenue-earner ... the private motorist.

Don't get me wrong, an alternative to both fuels which is sustainable would be ideal, but giving up a car and making your family take diesel-polluting buses and taxis is a ridiculous concept and has no impact on the real problem.

Newsnight - why not investigate the full environmental costs of transportation (private, public and commercial)- and look into diesel fuel.

Suggesting that taking your kids on a crowded polluting bus and in taxis is adding to the smokescreen on this issue (pardon the pun).

This is all commendable, but when is "Ethical Man" going to do away with his television? I've been living a TV-less life for 17 years and it would be surprising how easy it is. Or would that be a step too far?

I found London most easy to navigate on a powerful motorcycle; 50 mpg and 0-60 in 3 seconds. Car tax was cheap too. If they made air conditioned ones now that I live in Texas I'd buy one.

It seems to me that if you have young children (mine are teens) then you/your wife will suffer with public transport.

I would buy my Tesco shopping online and have them deliver it - saving me the cost of my girlfriend going to town and back in a taxi and all those "impulse buys"!

Too bad they don't offer that here.

The places I visit for non work activies do not have public transport - why should I give up my hobbies / interests for some liberal, nanny state thinking.

I have a car, enjoy driving and pay for the right to do so and very little would make me give it up.

As for flying - have had 24 flights this year and looking forward to doing more next year.

Why is it "ethical" not to have a car?

I leave for work around 6.20am and road transport at that hour consists of me and a local bus with one guy on it. Wouldn't it be more "ethical" of him to buy a car?

And if you like the tube, good for you, try going to Green Park on the tube around 8.30am, you might discover the tube needs a congestion charge!

Then of course there is the possibility of being murdered or otherwise attacked or insulted on public transport outside of peak hours.

And with respect, move outside of tube cover (99%+ of the country) and tell me how "easy" life is then without a car.

Guys, really, I don't pay a licence fee to be lectured and patronised by some London based journalist. Ditch this pointless "holier than thou" stuff.

I'm quite suprised that you needed a car living in Central London anyway, so it doesn't seem to be that much of a sacrifice. It's hardly virtuous not having a car whilst living in a city with the best public transport links in the UK. Sadly us provincial types aren't as well served, so I guess we'll just have to put up with your preaching anyway.

This issue has been done to death on other post boards/bloggs . Although you may get a self satisfied rosey glow from doing your bit (and I do do my bit) I can't help thinking that it is all a colossal waste of time, UNLESS--it is a GLOBAL effort. It has been said on many Tv/Radio progs, that our total contribution to carbon output etc, is a mere 2%. China alone will wipe out that effort with one years growth. Even our GREAT and TRUSTY partners in Europe are'nt all playing the game. Why is it--that we--the boy scouts of the world, are always the ones who 'volunteer', like some latter-day corporal Jones ( of Dads Army fame) to be the one's to------- whatever? I think all this panic is deliberate government spin and diversion, from other issues that threaten them, and of course---provides yet another terrific excuse for 'robber Brown'to create more stealth taxes----just when he was running out of ideas no doubt! Then of course -----there's Tony's legacy----'He who saved the world'.--------S_U_P_E_R !!!!!!!!!

Hey, less of the London bashing. I have lived in London, Dublin and Edinburgh and have never absolutely needed a car, although they can be very handy. Now I know that these are all cities and not the countryside - point taken. But for the large number of Britons who live in the city the point is not so much that you never need a car, but that you rarely need a car.. the fewer of us that drive, the safer it is to cycle and the nicer it is to walk. This will also make the streets safer.

I do agree though that the government must show leadership and not leave environmental issues up to pioneers and journalists....

I just thought I'd let you know that as a result of Justin's latest report my Dad has decided to get rid of his Range Rover and will use public transport instead. Well done Justin!

OK so you live in London where the "public transport" is second to none in the country.
A lot of other folk would like to give up the car but when you live in areas north of Milton Keynes public transport gets a bit thin on the ground.
One village near where I live in Staffordshire sees a bus three times a day but none on a Sunday!!
There are no shops or post office - they are 7 miles away.
Even where I live transport is poor - I can have a bus pass but with buses that do not turn up - turn up late or drive straight past you am i likely to give up my car.
I work 11 miles from home (only because there is nothing similar in my home town!)it would take me 20 mins walk to the bus, 45 mins on the first bus then because of poor timetabling it would take a further hour. The return journey is actually worse buses get very few and far between after 6pm!!!!

All governments from time in memorial, have banged on about freeing the roads of congestion. Equally--they have all cynically tried to tax us out of sight. THE ONLY WAY---that the public wil give up their cars freely, is when the government create's and implements, a decent, reliable, and modern, co-ordinated transport system. You can add--at reasonable cost too. All we have had, is endless 'enquiries and studies' at enormous cost, where enough hot air has been generated to keep a wind farm going. Instead of implementing such a life enhancing scheme, with all it's environmental benefits first, they want us to abandon our cars, and put up with a situation resembling Cairo or Calcutta.

I'm living in Sheffield at the moment in the city centre. I generally walk everywhere - even the 15/20 min walk from Tesco with 6 bags (good exercise). But to get a bus from town to my snooker hall about 2 miles from centre costs 拢1.50, you can't get a return so it's 拢3 there and back. Journeys in Leeds & Sheffield have gone up over 50% in a year or so. If there are a few of us,we can spend over a tenner on bus fares. Obviously as long as there is no financial insentive to switch to Public Transport people will continue to travel in comfort, without the risk of being spat on by collections of goons dominating the top deck. i suggest that if the buses were free in city centres, with large well organised Park&Ride and rail systems it would really have a positive effect. Ideal world theory!

Who has decided that not having a car is "ethical", by whose standards? Most people need a car to live today, its as simple as that, noboday likes to voluntarily get fleeced by the tax levies on petrol if they can help it. As the price of trains for commuters has gone up there is no viable alternative. Research has shown that even if you got rid of every car in the world, carbon emissions as a whole would only reduce by 1.5%. Climate change happens, there is nothing realistic you can do about it -time to rejoin the real world and stop following a fashionable political agenda.

I gave up my car in 2001 in the United States. The car culture just took too much of my time and money. I spent too much time sitting in queues in it in commuting or looking for a parking space. And I spent too much money on gas, upkeep, parking tickets, registration, and insurance. Yet the value of the thing plummetted quicker than any of my possessions. I knew it would be difficult to live without a car in a car culture like the US. So I moved to Amsterdam. I have a bicycle here. I paid 鈧�160 for it, but could have got it cheaper, but I wanted some luxury, like gear changes and hand grip breaks. The upkeep is about 鈧�20 per year, but could be less if I did the work myself. It is quite reliable, and I even go on holiday with it to Germany, Belgium and into the Dutch countryside. Suffices in our winters too. Surprisingly, I have also not had to join a gym to keep fit. And I have had much surgery on my leg from a motorbike accident, and recently had a hip resurfacing operation. Having a bike for my principal transportation has actually helped in me overcoming my mobility handicap. I recommend it. I am 56 years old. I don't miss cars.

Whereas the sentiment is all well and good, for many if not most it is a dream. Given the option I think I would quite like not to have the expense of a car. However, I need a car to get to work and perform at shows. Public transport is a joke, it would work out as expensive if not more so than driving, and I couldn't do my shows (I have a lot of equipment to carry). Additionally, taking rail services more than a few miles is extortionately time consuming. When its cheaper, quicker and less stressful to take a car than public transport you really have to wonder.

If you want to improve the situation we need inexpensive, punctual, effective and uncrowded public transport. Since privatisation its only gotten worse. So instead of beating us with a stick to use public transport (ie by insane taxation) throw us a carrot and make public transport a viable option for the majority. Most of our European Counterparts manage it, why can't we?

To top it all off, this week the announcement was made that Rail fares were going up above inflation yet again!

It's not fair!--Justin has singled ME out----NO one is saying that your efforts are'nt laudable, or the 'message' unimportant Justin.I do stand by 'MY' message though, which is that we can't be a voice in the wilderness--it has to be a truly global effort, to justify the enormous change to society that your proposals would bring---if it were implemented enmass. Have you really given this much consideration? The job losses alone for instance, how many people work in the auto manufacture and servicing industries etc ? Then there's the making and delivery of spare parts, one stop petrol garages that many rely on for forgotten items on the way home. We may not be a major producer of vehicles now, but there sure is a hell of a lot people still reliant on the industry for work, thanks mostly to Japanese companys. How about road haulage ? personally, and I'm not alone, I think there is enormouse room for change here. Our roads are clogged up with huge lorries (and getting bigger/heavier), moving goods that should never have been allowed to be taken from the railways.But thats another story. I'm old enough to remember urban streets empty of private cars---when buses by the score, in different Co. livery, raced to get to 'Stops' first, where queues 100 yds long were. The thing is--people LIVED yards from bus stops then, because the masses lived in the cities. After the post war clearencies, people were moved out--into green fields---miles from anywhere---but the regular bus services did'nt---and STILL HAS'NT !! I'm not saying we should'nt all do our bit---the quality of life WOULD be enhanced---but lets keep our feet on the ground, and our heads out of the clouds--and just be realistic, not a( ''council of despair'')as you put it. To me---my car represents freedom of choice, and mobility ( restricted I know) but I organise my usage, and don't make unecessary journey's. I also see my car as a mobile home, with most of those comforts. Nothing will be done by governments, if economies are threatened , with mass job losses, and the political price to pay.--which of course--is the stance shown by that great statesman and ecologist of our time---President George W Bush !! WE live in hope ! ( I think ).

Have you fallen off your bike yet?

I think you are mad to cycle in London. How would your wife or kids cope if you were killed or seriously injured? Do you have insurance? If not , get some!

Having displayed pictures of your previous injury on Newsnight, you are obviously aware how badly you can get injured. To date, I have had 7 months off work due to being injured while cycling in London.

(PS.I hope that your wife reads this!)

I am dyspraxic which affects my eyesight, such that I can't drive. I wish I could. But it means that I have had to become accustomed to using public transport for all journeys. So I have no respect for people who say they 'have' to have a car, or 'need' a car. They only fool themselves. We've had a park-and-ride open recently in our area, and it's interesting to see how many car drivers now use it, who wouldn't have considered travelling by bus before.

I live in a smallish village in Hertfordshire. Its neither Scotland nor London, but having a car is pretty useful.

However, like many families, we owned two cars. Now we own one, which my husband uses to get to work - I bike. I can bike because we made the conscious decision that I should work locally - another fairly logical decision in today's world

We have a car (a little Nissan Micra in case you're interested) if we need it for shopping or doing taxi services for the kids (although they are also encouraged to walk/bike when possible).

It would appear by seeing all the other mums dropping off their kids in the mornings (in their 4x4s or similar ...) that there are many other families in similar situations.

Isn't it really all about making sensible, logical choices and decisions. You don't have to be drastic to be green!

When did "ethical" acquire the exclusive definition "complying with all the latest enviro-fads"?

This is ridiculous. You sold your car for twenty Euros? Does being "green" mean turning into a gibbering crazy person and throwing money away?

On to-days 大象传媒 1pm news--it was announced that ANOTHER new road report reccomends that, road use pricing is the only way to persuade drivers to leave the car at home. FANTASTIC! What a surprise! Thats this governments answer to EVERYTHING, It's all they know, they have'nt got the brains god gave geese. On the other hand--it just might have something to do with revenue raising. One bright spark said the levy COULD--be used to improve the road system !! WHAT?? Well I don't know what the current total annual tax on vehicle ownership or usage is---but I know it IS astronomic already, and proportionally very little of it is spent on road maintenance and improvement as it is---they must think we're as dumb as they are. Where I live, the roads ( and pavements) are a national disgrace, and dangerous, like a third world backwater. Most of these so-called green measures never affect the well off, with their huge 4x4's. Congestion charges are not a problem to them either, those who can't afford it simply find other route's to their destination, and shift the problem elsewhere ie. 'rat runs' As I said yesterday--Where is the co-ordinated transport masterplan ??

I have recently had my diesel car modified slightly so that it runs on vegetable oil (NOT biodiesel, they are two completely, totally different things).
Yes, vegetable oil. The exact same stuff you can buy in any supermarket to cook with.
Diesel engines originally ran on vegetable oil, the first engine that Rudolph Diesel built ran on peanut oil. The kit is very simple, it heats the oil up to a temperature (using a heat exchanger) where it becomes runny like water and can be used by the engine.
If you don't believe me, and think I'm pulling your collective legs, go do some research.
Vegetable oil is much better to use, you can even run on waste veggie oil that restaurants and chippies throw away; just make sure it's filtered properly.

It is carbon neutral
It is renewable
It can be grown and manufactured locally
It has lower, cleaner emissions
It has better lubricating properties than mineral diesel, so it better for the engine
Vehicle performance is unaffected, and the smoggy exhaust is replaced by the lovely, slighly sweet aroma of popcorn, or hot oil

Biodiesel ain't as 'green' as you peeps may think...to make it, you add a mixture of methanol and caustic soda to vegetable oil. Methanol is made from natural gas...which is, yep you guessed it, a FOSSIL FUEL. Plus there's all the waste glycerine that needs to be disposed of afterwards, and the biodiesel needs to be washed with lots of water to remove residual methanol, soaps and glycerine, and there's the question of what to do with that water. Why bother, when you can adapt your car to take veggie oil, and avoid the extra energy & resources needed to make biodiesel

Unfortunately, the government don't seem to want people to use this truly renewable, carbon neutral fuel. The amount of tax on veggie oil when used as a road fuel, is exactly the same as regular diesel you buy from the garges - 47.1p per litre.
So if I went into Sainsbury's and bought a litre of veggie oil for 58 pence, the tax on it would amount to 拢1.05. Yet I can get fossil fuel diesel from the garage for about 90 pence per litre.
The government proudly announced a reduced rate of fuel duty of 27.1p per litre for biodiesel (which needs a fossil fuel product to make it) 'To encourage the use of renewable fuels'. This reduced rate does NOT apply to veggie oil, which Customs and Excise laughably claim is a 'diesel fuel substitute' Yet veggie oil was the originally intended fuel for the diesel engine. Even if you are lucky enough to get this lower rate for vegetable oil, it still would amount to 85p. Not really any incentive, is it?
So the only real option is to collect waste veggie oil and use that. In Germany, they have scrapped the tax on both biodiesel AND vegetable oil. Over there, it seems the govt really do want people to use renewable energy.

Don't expect any discount from the DVLA on your road tax either for going green, even though a 2 liter diesel car running on vegetable oil has lower carbon emissions than a Smart car or hybrid Honda Prius. Oh, yes, and you will still be liable to pay the 拢8 London congestion charge.

And the government are continually telling us that we should all do more to reduce our carbon emissions, recycle more, use less energy, etc. etc., blah blah blah blah....
The reality on the ground is completely contradictory/hypocritical to what their various departments are doing.
And now they want to bring in road charging?? It's quite disgusting, and I'm sick and tired of it.

Ethical Man, if you're interested, then contact me, and I'll take you for a spin in my veggie mobile...

I read about some new software being marketed in Japan which helps you plan a car journey based on minimum fuel usage.Has anyone else heard of it? I can't remember much about it but it sounded interesting and I never kept the reference.

I own a Jaguar XKR, it does about 19MPG, it's band G for carbon emissions.
I really don't care what you cretins say. I love my car it鈥檚 a wonderful piece of English engineering.
One day the sun will explode and all this will be meaningless, no amount of recycling, vegetarianism or wind farms will stop that.
Live life for today, we need to find another planet to inhabit if the human race is to survive.
Travel and traveling benefits our economy, science and progress in general.
Any attempt to undermine people traveling by plane, car or boat will be a step in the wrong direction.
Let鈥檚 all go live in an eco-cave and throw sticks at each other or progress forwards.
Build more roads.
Lower fuel duty.
Raise the speed limit
Paint targets on speed cameras

Anyway back to driving around for the sheer fun of it I go鈥︹��

so you scrapped a car just to get a cool video?

sure londoners could survive without a car. and yes car sharing is a great idea. but the things you've done to make your point aren't exactly environmental or ethical.