Get on your bike for Car Free Day 2010
Car Free Day (September 22nd) comes at the end of European Mobility Week, which aims to promote sustainable mobility. Opting to get on a motorcycle or scooter is one way people can contribute to helping reduce congestion, enable shorter journey times and help to improve the environment.
‘Travel Smarter, Live Better ‘ is the theme of the campaign this year , encouraging local councils and individuals to take action to reduce the amount of traffic in urban areas and create a better environment.
The events that take place and vary by location but they give motorists and commuters an idea of their locality with fewer cars.
The Motor Cycle Industry Association (MCI) has identified a number of key reasons that people should be motivated to leave their car at home and use a motorcycle either for commuting or general purpose.
Practical: Issues such as parking in cities are a problem and again bikes can offer a practical solution. On average 5 bikes can be parked in the place of one car.
Congestion: Single occupancy car journeys for work purposes are around 85% so bikes and scoters make a significant contribution to helping reducing congestion, especially in cities. Transport for London’s statistics show that In the congestion charging zone, casualties fell by around 13%, accompanied by a 20% increase in motorcycle use -- dramatically demonstrating the road safety value of the charging exemption that motorcyclists enjoy.
The Environment: – Powered Two-wheelers are recognised as a green form of transport with lower emissions than some other modes of transport. On average, new P2Ws emit 110g/CO2 per km, already achieve a better performance than the targets given to the car industry. On average, Mopeds emit about 70g/km and the average for cars is 158g/km.
Anyone who is interested in enjoying the benefits of a powered-two wheeler, but doesn’t currently ride a bike or scooter can take advantage of the Motor Cycle Industry’s Get On campaign, that is offering people the opportunity to try before they buy and enjoy a FREE one-hour taster session at a local training school.
It is easy to enroll and there is lots more information about getting started on two-wheels on the website geton.co.uk.