Are You A Green Motorist?

Saturday, 20. February 2010

What makes a ‘green’ motorist? Some drivers give themselves a good old pat on the back when changing from a petrol driven car to a diesel. Excellent! Count me into that group and there’s a small degree of merit as diesel, once stripped of particulates, is a little better for the environment than petrol. Taking it one step further there are those that use old chip oil to power their aging diesel cars but whilst it’s a good idea they are normally hippies and types that hug trees and each other a lot so whilst admirable there aren’t that many about to make a huge contribution to the wellbeing of the planet. Then there are those that believe being a responsible ‘green’ motorist means accelerating the petrol powered Range Rover gently away from the lights instead of hoofing it to 60 miles per hour (in a 40 limit obviously) in 2.5 seconds. Thoughtful and considerate. Added to which their gentle braking also helps to save the planet as well as avoid spilling the M&S food shopping all over the floor of the car. With a bit of effort, keeping revs down and driving more smoothly their contribution to saving the planet may be achieved, they believe, by just tipping the fuel consumption to a smidgen over 20mpg. Excellent! Hybrid drivers believe that they will ascend to Heaven as a result of their choice of transport but even these holiest of drivers are scorned by those who choose pedal power or public transport. So what makes a ‘green’ motorist? Well other than those that now choose to walk, and therefore not motorists, I believe that it is anyone who is willing to make a contribution. We’re not going to save the planet overnight but we’ll conquer the miles – one step at a time. I’m off to design a few crop circles with my ‘green’ friends and hug a hippie. By Graham Hill