The US Department of Transportation released a study today — Earth day — on how we can curb greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within the transportation sector.

One item we especially like in their press release:

Reducing the number of vehicle-miles traveled through a combination of strategies, including improved public transportation, coordinated transportation and land use strategies, and greater opportunities for walking and biking practices emphasized in the Department’s livability initiative could reduce transportation greenhouse emissions 5 to 17 percent by 2030.

Within the strategy section, the study adds:

Non-motorized improvements, including construction of pedestrian and bicycle transportation networks through dedicated rights-of-way, as well as enhancements to existing rights-of-way that safely provide for bicycle and pedestrian traffic, have modest potential for GHG reductions. These measures would reduce GHGs by 0.2 to 0.6 percent by 2030, at moderate investment costs (less than $200 per ton), or a net savings when reduced vehicle operating costs are considered. While their GHG benefits may be modest, these strategies also provide significant cobenefits in the form of improved livability as well as mobility for travelers who do not drive. These improvements, especially those for pedestrian mobility, are closely linked to land use changes discussed in the next section that describe how our residential housing, transportation, and other infrastructure choices are linked.

That seems to say that investments in biking and walking infrastructure not only reduce GHG but produce a net savings because its a less expensive mode of transportation.

Link: Transportation’s Role in Reducing U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Tags: greenhouse gas, US DOT

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 22nd, 2010 at 3:14 pm and is filed under General bike news. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.