Green Daily

Many factors affect how we travel. Cost, distance, and time usually determine how we decide to get where we want to go. In a perfect world we'd always be able to take the cheapest, fastest and most luxurious form of transportation available. But this world isn't perfect, and in addition to cost and distance, we now have to think about the environmental effect of our travels.

Air travel is usually a hassle. You have to wait through lines, pass through security checks and (usually) endure flight delays. But when it comes to long distance trips, nothing's faster. Plus, it's more than a little difficult to drive from New York to London.

If you're taking a long distance trip, flying might actually be more economical than driving. A ticket from New York to Los Angeles is probably cheaper, in most cases, than paying for the gas it would take you to drive. But then again, a short plane trip (depending on your location) might be more expensive.

One thing is certain, planes release more greenhouse gases than do cars -- much more in fact. Some studies suggest that one plane trip releases more CO2 than a year of driving would! However, the environmental impact is offset by the fact that most planes fly with many passengers. More passengers means a reduction in the amount of car trips that otherwise would have taken place.

So what's you best bet? Use your car (hopefully a hybrid) for short trips and fly when you're traveling longer distances. If you're using a hybrid and carpooling than your carbon footprint is lessened. And because you'll likely to take fewer long trips, you probably won't need to fly as often. Keeping your air travel to a minimum helps limit CO2 emissions and reduce the need for oil (jets use a lot of fuel).

Sources:

"Longer Airline Flights Porposed to Fight Global Warming." Live Science. http://www.livescience.com/environment/050126_contrail_climate.html

"Flying in the Facr of Global warming." Responsible Travel.com. http://www.responsibletravel.com/Copy/Copy101993.htm

Flying vs. Driving: Whic is Cheaper When Gas is Pricey." Smarter Travel. http://www.smartertravel.com/travel-advice/Flying-driving-Which-cheaper.html?id=9787