World environment day driving tips

As today is World Environment Day, it’s the perfect time to share our top tips for environmentally friendly driving. Even making small differences to our lifestyle can significantly help the planet. In this blog post, we share our top environmentally friendly driving habits.

Vehicle maintenance

1. Tyres- ensure that your tyres are properly inflated as this can help you to drive more safely and also reduce your fuel consumption. This can help reduce the impact of your driving on your environment. Tyres that are under inflated will make your car use more fuel than is necessary.
   
2. Engine oil- make sure that you are using the manufacturer’s recommended engine oil which can be found in your vehicle logbook. This can help to improve efficiency and make sure that your car is functioning as efficiently as possible.
   
3. Regular servicing- having your car regularly serviced can help ensure that your driving is as environmentally friendly as possible. Servicing ensures that the components of your car are all working as efficiently as they should be. This means that the impact of your vehicle on the environment will be kept as low as possible.

Before your journey

Before setting off, consider whether it is essential for you to use your car. Alternatives such as public transport, walking or cycling can help the environment by reducing carbon emissions. In some situations, driving is the only viable transport method. So, before you start your drive, follow these tips to lessen the environmental impact of your journey.

The heavier the contents of your car are, the more fuel you will consume. As a result of this, removing unnecessary weight from your vehicle will help to make your driving more eco friendly. Similarly, roof racks or boxes increase the resistance of your vehicle which means that fuel consumption is increased. These simple tips are easy to carry out but if done regularly can help to significantly reduce the environmental impact of your vehicle.

Your driving style

The way you drive also has an impact on how environmentally friendly your journey will be. Harsh acceleration and braking will cause your vehicle to consume more fuel than keeping a steady speed. Make sure that you are looking ahead to hazards such as traffic lights so that you can slow down and stop more gradually.  In addition, driving above the speed limit causes more fuel to be used. Driving at 80mph uses considerably more fuel than driving at 70mph. Sticking to the speed limits is important not only for safety reasons but also to help reduce the environmental impact of your driving.

Try to avoid aggressive driving where possible as this can increase fuel consumption and therefore environmental impact. The more aggressive your driving is, the greater the environmental impact. Making sure that your driving is calm will ensure that you’re using less fuel and then helping to protect the environment.

As summer is approaching, considering how and when to use your air con is important in ensuring that your vehicle is causing as little damage to the environment as possible. At lower speed, using your air-con will cause your car to consume more fuel. However, at higher speeds, the impact of this is less prominent.  For this reason, it is recommended to open the window for air when driving at low speeds and use the air con when travelling at higher speeds.

Hybrid and electric vehicles

Driving a hybrid or electric vehicle is a good way to reduce the environmental impact of your driving. Hybrid vehicles use a combination of both gas and electric engines whereas fully electric vehicles rely solely on electricity. However, not everyone owns these types of vehicles and using our tips in this blog, it is possible to drive in a more environmentally friendly way even with a regular car.