07 November 2008
utopia without greenwash
market place, grass roots coordination of citizens to solve the problem of transportation - utopian.
No. Practiced for about 10 years here in Germany through a website called www.mitfahrgelegenheit.de (translated something like "opportunity-to-catch-a-ride") - a nifty site lets you post trips you take and thus advertise the spare seats in your car at a price you set.
This means several things:
cheap trips all over Germany and many other countries - for individuals.
fully occupied cars instead of many cars with just one person inside - for the environment.
shared petrol costs - for the driver.
So I had the fortune to take three other people to on my trip to Frankfurt and back, which made the ride also more interesting than just having to depend on the radio for entertainment. And I am a total fan of the way this website works.
And best of all: without ideological fanfare - even though this is one of the greenest things I know. A lot to learn from.
(one reflection I had is that it works because of the money involved. cheap trips. shared fuel.) ¶ 5:06 PM
No. Practiced for about 10 years here in Germany through a website called www.mitfahrgelegenheit.de (translated something like "opportunity-to-catch-a-ride") - a nifty site lets you post trips you take and thus advertise the spare seats in your car at a price you set.
This means several things:
cheap trips all over Germany and many other countries - for individuals.
fully occupied cars instead of many cars with just one person inside - for the environment.
shared petrol costs - for the driver.
So I had the fortune to take three other people to on my trip to Frankfurt and back, which made the ride also more interesting than just having to depend on the radio for entertainment. And I am a total fan of the way this website works.
And best of all: without ideological fanfare - even though this is one of the greenest things I know. A lot to learn from.
(one reflection I had is that it works because of the money involved. cheap trips. shared fuel.) ¶ 5:06 PM
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Hey Bee,
I used this site all summer to travel across Germany and I think a major catalyst is the high price of fuel in Germany and the considerably more expensive alternative of rail transportation. In the US there is arguably more reason for such a site because of the lack of viable transportation alternatives, but no national brand has emerged. This could be from the individualist culture or the lack of proper price incentives. For green to work, there must be economic benefits attached that are clear and predictable in the short and long term. Basically, I agree with you. In my experience, the drivers I encountered cared about the environment, but the stimulus that changed their behavior was in fact economic. Ideological fanfare is fine, but we won't have a lasting effect until externalities are reflected in pricing ;). That's the end of my nerd rant. Espero que estes bien!!!
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I used this site all summer to travel across Germany and I think a major catalyst is the high price of fuel in Germany and the considerably more expensive alternative of rail transportation. In the US there is arguably more reason for such a site because of the lack of viable transportation alternatives, but no national brand has emerged. This could be from the individualist culture or the lack of proper price incentives. For green to work, there must be economic benefits attached that are clear and predictable in the short and long term. Basically, I agree with you. In my experience, the drivers I encountered cared about the environment, but the stimulus that changed their behavior was in fact economic. Ideological fanfare is fine, but we won't have a lasting effect until externalities are reflected in pricing ;). That's the end of my nerd rant. Espero que estes bien!!!
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