- Share This Post
- submit
- 0
-
Sparkle (0)
If you're flying to BlogHer '09, you've probably already bought your round trip ticket to Chicago -- and thus committed to spewing a lot of carbon by taking that flight. No I'm not judging -- I'm flying too, and later this month, I'll write about greening flights as much as possible. But this post's about greening pre-flight!
Besides eco-issues, getting to the airport in a car can be annoying for other reasons. Driving your own car and parking at the airport for a weekend can get costly -- and trying to arrange a friend drive you can be a hassle, especially if your flight takes off really early, really late, or during business hours. Luckily, airport travel's getting greener in many cities -- and most airports have multiple great eco-friendly options that're quite convenient too:
Public transportation: Bus or rail's usually the cheapest option for getting to the airport. If I take my local Big Blue Bus, I can get to the airport for just 75 cents! Compare that to about $40 via taxi.
The downside to this method's that many towns don't have robust public transportation systems -- especially early in the morning or late at night -- so in some places, going by public transportation can take significantly longer. In addition, if you're on a longer trip that requires more luggage, the travel process can be cumbersome -- especially if you have to make multiple transfers.
On the other hand, if you don't have much luggage and are close to a direct bus or rail line to the airport, travel by public transportation can actually be a lot less stressful than driving. Especially lucky are those close to rail lines; you'll avoid rush hour traffic jams entirely!
Shuttles: In L.A., we have a few different options. A Flyaway shuttle that costs $6 a trip ferries people from 3 different spots around town to the airport -- which is convenient if you live close to one of those 3 spots. A couple more expensive shuttles like Primetime will pick you up and drop you off at your residence -- but cost about $20 a trip.
Many cities have similar shuttle services. Usually, I'll take the Flyaway to get to the airport if I'm flying during normal daylight hours, but will opt for Primetime if I need to get to the airport rather early or late.
Eco-friendly taxis and cars: In cities like New York and San Francisco, hybrid taxis are becoming commonplace. L.A. too has a couple eco-friendly cab companies -- Taxi Taxi and Eurotaxi -- that use hybrid or biodiesel taxis.
In the San Francisco Bay and New England areas, you can hire PlanetTran, an eco-friendly transportation service to the airport. PlanetTran uses a mostly-Prius fleet -- equipped with wifi! Bianca of The Green Girls recently took a ride with PlanetTran:
However, eco-friendly taxis and cars aren't necessarily greener than, say, driving your own Prius to the airport. Group travel's generally the greener way to go.
So -- What are the eco-friendly ways to get to the airport in your 'hood? And how will you be getting to your local airport for BlogHer '09?
Photos by Siel
___
BlogHer Contributing Editor Siel also blogs at greenLAgirl.com.
