The TDM Professional

Greening Your Organic Shopping

How can environmentally oriented folks who want to do their grocery shopping for local meat and produce make their green practice even greener? Well, the Sierra Club's Hey Mr. Green says you can take fewer trips, ride your bike or best of all carpool and make grocery shopping an event (Thinking Outside (and Inside) the Car, June 25, 2008). Good to see the coming together of green living and green transportation. Enjoy!

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and The TDM Professional blog and is a biking/Metrorail commuter from Alexandria, Virginia just outside of Washington, D.C.

Another Reason To Drive Less. Save Our Lungs

Earlier this month the American Lung Association released its Annual State of the Air Report. In issuing its list of most polluted cities, the bad news for us here is that the Washington/Baltimore area moved up in the rankings and we are now #10 in short-term particle pollution and #9 in ozone pollution. Not good news.

In its Tip Sheet for Protecting Your Family from Unhealthy Air, ALA says one of the best things we can do is: "Walk, bike or carpool. Combine trips and use buses, subways, light rail systems, commuter trains or other alternatives to driving."

Fortunately there are many resources for learning more about these pollutants and how you can help:

• CommuterPage.com has a great Air Quality and Transportation page for individuals.
• Arlington Transportation Partners has information for employers.
• Arlington's Car-Free Diet has a nifty calculator that can demonstrate to you how changing your driving habits can help clean the air (in addition to saving you money and burning more calories).
• Clean Air Partners is the Washington/Baltimore region's headquarters for information about air quality and they have a wealth of information and tools including the ability to sign up for Air Quality Alerts and Forecasts.
• And when the air quality is forecast to be bad (orange, red or purple) you can Ride the Bus Free in Northern Virginia on Metrobus and all the local systems!

So there's no excuse. Learn a little and do your share to clean the air and help save our lungs.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and The TDM Professional blog and is a biking/Metrorail commuter from Alexandria, Virginia just outside of Washington, D.C.

Earlier this month the American Lung Association released its Annual State of the Air Report. In issuing its list of most polluted cities, the bad news for us here is that the Washington/Baltimore area moved up in the rankings and we are now #10 in short-term particle pollution and #9 in ozone pollution. Not good news.

In its Tip Sheet for Protecting Your Family from Unhealthy Air, ALA says one of the best things we can do is: "Walk, bike or carpool. Combine trips and use buses, subways, light rail systems, commuter trains or other alternatives to driving."

Fortunately there are many resources for learning more about these pollutants and how you can help:

• CommuterPage.com has a great Air Quality and Transportation page for individuals.
• Arlington Transportation Partners has information for employers.
• Arlington's Car-Free Diet has a nifty calculator that can demonstrate to you how changing your driving habits can help clean the air (in addition to saving you money and burning more calories).
• Clean Air Partners is the Washington/Baltimore region's headquarters for information about air quality and they have a wealth of information and tools including the ability to sign up for Air Quality Alerts and Forecasts.
• And when the air quality is forecast to be bad (orange, red or purple) you can Ride the Bus Free in Northern Virginia on Metrobus and all the local systems!

So there's no excuse. Learn a little and do your share to clean the air and help save our lungs.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and The TDM Professional blog and is a biking/Metrorail commuter from Alexandria, Virginia just outside of Washington, D.C.

The Carbon Emissions of Biking vs. Driving

Just in time for Bike To Work Day this Friday, May 16, the Sierra Club's Answer Guy Hey Mr. Green puts to rest the silly notion that fueling a bike (by feeding a person food that has been grown with fossil fuel inputs and transported to the consumer) is worse for the environment than fueling a car (Is Driving Better Than Cycling, April 29, 2008). Says Hey Mr. Green:

"Of course it takes some energy to make and propel a bike, but nowhere near what's required to make and propel cars that weigh 70 or 80 times as much and demand vastly greater energy for maintenance, from oil changes to tires to new fenders and grilles when they get banged up."

Now that we've cleared that up, we hope to see you out on the trails on the 16th. I'll be riding to the Rosslyn pit stop. With 26 pit stops in all, there should be one close to your home or office. Its not too late to sign up to participate. See you on Friday!

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and The TDM Professional blog and is a biking/Metrorail commuter from Alexandria, Virginia just outside of Washington, D.C.

Build Places Where People Don't Neet to Drive and Save the Planet

That's the conclusion of a major research project co-sponsored by the Urban Land Institute, the National Center for Smart Growth, Smart Growth America and the Center for Clean Air Policy. The just released report and book, checking in at a massive 172 pages and entitled Growing Cooler: The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change is a comprehensive review of dozens of studies that conclude that urban development is both a key contributor to climate change and an essential factor in combating it.

Curbing emission from cars depends on improved vehicle efficiency, cleaner fuels, and a reduction in driving according to the report. It goes on to say that one of the best way to reduce vehicle miles traveled is to build places where people can accomplish more with less driving. The report documents that persons who live in compact urban neighborhoods, where cars are not the only transportation option, drive a third fewer miles than those in the auto-oriented suburbs.

The book shares market research that shows a majority of future housing demand lies in smaller homes and lots, townhouses, and condos where jobs and activities are close by. With real estate projections showing that two thirds of development expected to be here in 2050 isn't built yet, there's still potential to get this right. And the book acts a primer on how to make green neighborhoods more available and more affordable. It also makes recommendations for shifting government regulations, spending and policies away from favoring sprawling, auto-dependant growth towards green, transit-oriented smart-growth.

"Clearly, the development industry has a key role in the search for solutions to offset the impact of climate change," said ULI Senior Resident Fellow William H. Hudnut, III, former mayor of Indianapolis. "Whether close-in or in suburbs, well-planned communities give residents the option to walk, bike or take transit to nearby shopping, retail and entertainment. Being able to spend less time behind the wheel will benefit our health, our pocketbooks and the environment."

The findings show that people who move into compact, “green neighborhoods” are making as big a contribution to fighting global warming as those who buy the most efficient hybrid vehicles, but remain in car-dependent areas.

Let's hope that developers, planners and policy makers everywhere check out this important report.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and The TDM Professional blog and a biking/Metrorail commuter from Alexandria, Virginia just outside of Washington, D.C.

Want to Fight Global Climate Change? Take the Bus

According to a just released report by APTA (American Public Transit Association), the most powerful weapon you can use to combat global climate change may be a daily transit pass. The Study, Public Transportation's Contribution to U.S. Greenhouse Gas Reduction, which was prepared by Science Applications International Corporation for APTA, points out that commuting by public transit is one of the most significant actions a household member can take to reduce their carbon footprint. According to the report:

"New research shows that a person who rides public transportation instead of driving reduces his or her carbon dioxide output, a harmful greenhouse gas, by more than 20 lbs a day and 4,800 lbs annually. That saves more than weatherizing a home, adjusting a thermostat, switching to compact fluorescent light bulbs and replacing older appliances with higher efficiency models, combined. A national climate change strategy that doesn't embrace public transportation has simply missed the bus."

Regarding land use impacts the report says:

"Investments in public transportation have the benefit of supporting higher density land uses that allow for fewer vehicle miles of travel...The results range from a reduction in VMT of between 1.4 miles and 9 miles for every transit passenger mile traveled. The outcome would be more efficient use of roadways, reduced road maintenance, shorter highway commute times and reduced need for street and off- street parking."

APTA is using the report to call on Congress to provide additional funding, to provide additional tax credits to employers who spend resources to support transit ridership programs and to provide tax credits to developers of mixed used transit oriented development projects.

Public Transportation's Contribution to U.S. Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fact Sheet

Public Transportation's Contribution to U.S. Greenhouse Gas Reduction Full Report

Related Article: Taking Transit: The Most Effective Route to Cutting Carbon, September 27, 2007; Erica Barnett, WorldChanging.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and The TDM Professional blog and a biking/Metrorail commuter from Alexandria, Virginia just outside of Washington, D.C.

U.K. Report: Walk More and Lose Weight, Save the Environment

A CommuterPageBlog reader points us to this a story (School Run Car Ban Proposed, August 14) on the U.K.'s Channel 4 web site where some people are calling for 'car exclusion zones' around schools to get families to walk more and fight rising obesity rates. The cry for change is prompted by a report released August 13 by the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP) entitled Unfit for Purpose: How Car Use Fuels Climate Change and Obesity.

The main points of the report include:

• Since the Second World War, the continuous increase in car ownership has led to a dramatic decline in walking as a means of transport - muscle power gave way to fossil power.
• This report calculates that just by returning to the average distance walked by people in the UK without cars, the rising tide of obesity can be almost halted.
• At the same time, a substantial share of individuals' contribution to national carbon dioxide emissions could be avoided.
• The report goes on to argue that this could and should be done through renewed efforts to promote walking as transport. This would be vastly cheaper than dealing with the consequences of the obesity epidemic and climate change.

Some key findings from the report:

• 40% of all journeys in the UK are under 2 miles in length - distances easily covered by up to 30 minutes of brisk walking. Nonetheless, 38% of these journeys are currently by car.
• If a typical British adult were to walk just an hour more per week (equivalent to the difference in walking between a typical driver and a non-driver) this would counteract a weight increase of 2 stone (28 pounds) over a decade and a longer-term slide into obesity.
• This alone could make a major contribution to halting the trend of increasing obesity across the UK.
• The extra walking could displace at least 11 million tonnes of CO2 from cars - amounting to 15.4% of the total emissions from passenger cars.

The report author notes that "walking is the most obvious way for most people to burn calories." Seems like if we all tried to find ways to incorporate more walking into our routines we'd benefit as individuals and as a community. For more information on walking visit www.walkarlington.com.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a biking/Metro commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria.

Transportation Options Go Green - Tools from Live Earth

Yesterday's Live Earth concert called attention to the climate crisis and their website provides solutions so that you can learn how to do your part to save the planet. You can start by taking a 3-minute interactive quiz and finding out "What's Your Live Impact?" score. The quiz asks questions about your home, job, shopping, transportation and community to measure your impact on the environment. Along the way, you'll be asked if you want to make a pledge to change something such as using CFL light bulbs or to share the ride one day a week. What's your score? You can also make a public commitment to do something and add your name to the list of people willing to help.

In promoting their Global Warming Survival Handbook they provide some teasers on the web site about some of the solutions you'll find inside. Those include solutions sections on:

No. 5: Sub-Size It - don't buy big cars.
No. 6: Green Your Car - small changes can save tons of CO2.
No. 21: Work at Home - commute to your home office.
No. 35: Ride a Bike - using one will keep you healthy and happy.
No. 36: Decongest Downtown - policies for minimizing car use can make cities healthier and more pleasant.
No. 42: Share the Driving - feel the guilt when you drive solo?

Sounds like an interesting book. It's good to see that sharing the ride, riding your bike or walking and taking mass transit instead of driving alone is hitting the mainstream as being green and doing your part to help the planet. Let's hope this new public consciousness about the impacts of how we travel leads more people to consider using these options for even some of their trips. Every bit helps our environment, decreases congestion and improves our quality of life. 

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a biking/Metro commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria

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Maryland Ranks High for Solutions to Oil Addiction

A report released last week by the National Resources Defense Council ranks the states on vulnerability to rising gas prices and on pioneering solutions such as clean cars, clean fuels, smart growth and investment in transit (Report Ranks States Most Vulnerable to Rising Gas Prices, June 19, 2007, Press Release). According to the report, Addicted to Oil: Ranking States' Oil Vulnerability and Solutions for Change (PDF), those most vulnerable to rising oil prices in order include:

1. Mississippi
2. South Carolina
3. Georgia
4. Kentucky
5. New Mexico
6. Oklahoma
7. Arizona
8. Louisiana
9. Arkansas
10. West Virginia

Virginia comes in at 28th most vulnerable and Maryland 40th. Those doing the most to find solutions in order include:

1. California
2. Washington
3. New Jersey
4. Rhode Island
5. Oregon
6. Maine
7. New York
8. Maryland
9. Connecticut
10. Massachusetts

Virginia comes in at 38. In the "Transit Spending Prioritization Ranking" category Virginia comes in at #16 and Maryland at #2. The report is interesting because it not only tries to ascertain those states that are most vulnerable and doing the least to help, but also points out those states that are trying to do the right thing and spends a little time explaining what some of these policies on clean vehicles, clean fuels, smart growth and public transit are all about. And its good to see Maryland getting its due for its smart-growth policies and investment in transit. Even Virginia ranks comparatively high in transit spending and so that's good too. Enjoy the report.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a biking/Metro commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria

Is Taller Better? Another Call for More Density

In this morning's Washington Post, Paul Schwartzman writes (High-Level Debate On Future of D.C., May, 2, 2007) that Christopher Leinberger, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution, tells us that with land in short supply in the District that taller buildings should be permitted. From the Post:

"Taller buildings, Leinberger said, would lower prices and lead more residents and corporations to choose the city over gas-guzzling suburban sprawl. The threat of global warming makes the need to reconsider the height limit even more immediate, he said. "We have a moral imperative to increase density, to get us out of our cars," said Leinberger"

Interesting. And wasn't it just a couple days ago that we were discussing (Drive Less & Stop Building Those Car-Dependant Developments in the Exurbs, April 30) a Washington Post analysis that said the region's carbon emissions, which contribute to global warming, were growing at more than twice the national rate due in large part to our growth occurring in sprawling exurbs. And wasn't it just last week that Montgomery County Planning Commission Chair Royce Hanson said (Easing Traffic Not So Easy, April 25, 2007) that solutions for reducing traffic pointed toward "in-fill development and multi-family homes that come in older parts of the county."

As a native Washingtonian I've always believed the City's height restrictions were sacrosanct. But perhaps the time is coming where we need to revisit the issue. The issue should be the region's burden to share. Everything inside the beltway and near good public transit should be looked at too. And we should provide these areas with even better transit service. As we've noted here before it seems that more and more of the region's leaders seem to be waking up to the fact that issues from traffic congestion - which is a quality of life issue as well as an economic issue - to our environment can be addressed with land use planning that is compact and transit-oriented and with programs that encourage people to live, work, and play...no car required.

Another good article to read. Enjoy.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a biking/Metro commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria.

Drive Less & Stop Building Those Car-Dependant Developments in the Exurbs

As Global Warming and other environmental issues begin to take a higher profile with the public, TDM professionals need to start making a stronger case that TDM can make a significant contribution to providing a solution.

Drive Less & Stop Building Those Car-Dependant Developments in the Exurbs - that's the message I took away from the fascinating article in yesterday's Washington Post (D.C. Area Sees Spike In Rate of Emissions, David Fahrenthold, April 29, 2007) about how the Washington area's emissions of greenhouse gas from vehicles and electricity has increased more than twice the national rate recently. And it seems that our rate of emissions is growing even faster than the rate our population is growing. Why? Because our growth is occurring in those far flung exurbs where you have to drive to pick up the paper and get a carton of milk. The Post noted D.C.'s emissions were less than the suburbs. 

Recently Arlington, Fairfax and the State of Maryland have launched green initiatives. And many individuals are taking action (the Post talks about Arlington County School Board Member Ed Fendly - pictured here riding his bike to work - as an example). It seems we'll have to think both short and long term. We'll need to start conserving and reducing our energy consumption now and we'll need to build our new communities more compactly and close to transit or better yet do more infill development instead of gobbling up what remains of the farms and forests in our hinterlands.

The article points out we need better data and it underscores how much work we all have to do if we are going to begin to make a dent in slowing the growth rate in carbon dioxide emissions before we can even think of start reducing it. It's a good thing concerned people are starting to take notice and take action. Start today by choosing to drive less.

Enjoy the article. For more information on how you can take action here are some links: AIRE blog; AIRE website; AIRE Transportation. If you know of other good sites, please let us know.

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Chris Hamilton is the Commuter Services Chief for Arlington County, manager of CommuterPageBlog and a biking/Metro commuter from Rosemont in Alexandria.