Your contribution to greenhouse gas emissions

From "Trade in your car keys for a public transit pass: Switching to public transportation can save the environment" in the Daily Aztec:

A new study sponsored by the Transit Cooperative Research Program of the Transportation Research Board found that commuters who switch to public transportation could reduce their carbon emissions by up to 30 percent. ...

Longer commutes, for one, are to blame for this increase. From 1990 to 2004, greenhouse gas emissions from mobile sources, including cars and trucks, have increased by 27 percent.

In a study titled "Public Transportation's Contribution to U.S. Greenhouse Gas Reduction," it was reported that if an average commuter opted to travel via public transportation, a household may reduce its carbon emissions up to 30 percent meaning 20 pounds of Carbon dioxide per day and more than 4,800 pounds in a year.

While other lifestyle changes can reduce the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, changing our commuting habits has the greatest impact.

For instance, replacing an old refrigerator with a more efficient one saves 335 pounds of carbon dioxide per year. Taking public transportation could save more than 14 times as much.

But commuters should look into public transportation for other reasons, too.

"If just one family member used public transportation instead of driving to work, the household could save up to $6,000 a year," Jablonski said...

Public transportation use should be at the top of the list of ways for households to become greener," he said.