drive: The eco-factor. Driving is typically the greener way to go. Driving a fuel-efficient car releases far less greenhouse-gas emissions than flying.
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It's relatively easy for us, much easier than air travel for example. Gas is comparatively cheap here, we have a federal interstate highway system that is generally well maintained, and you can drive for days without crossing a border or encountering someone who can't speak the same language you do.
The main difference between flying and driving to a vacation is time spent. Benefits and drawbacks vary for either; driving can make hard-to-reach areas accessible, but risks traffic and high gas prices.Flying, meanwhile, allows you to multitask, but you're at the whim of airlines.
In fact, unless you're looking to venture from Los Altos to LA off-road through state parks the whole way—in a Hummer with Tonka-truck mud tires—driving is generally greener than flying.
If you're traveling within your state or a state over, driving is most likely going to be faster. If you're traveling more than 300 miles, flying will probably get you there quicker.
So why does flying feel more dangerous when it's obviously far safer than driving? Part of our fear may stem from the perception that, while plane crashes may be rarer than car accidents, they are more deadly.
Vehicle pollutants harm our health and contain greenhouse gases that cause climate change. Burning gasoline and diesel fuel creates harmful byproducts like nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, benzene, and formaldehyde. In addition, vehicles emit carbon dioxide, the most common human-caused greenhouse gas.
Aviation is responsible for between 2pc and 3pc of global carbon emissions. And Ms Thunberg continues to refuse to fly because of the impact on the environment.
Some fliers are worried about being in an enclosed space for too long, others dislike heights, and a select group is terrified they might accidentally open a plane door mid-flight. Furthermore, some passengers are worried about germs and viruses and others are just anxious that they might feel anxious on a plane.
So if you only fly on commercial airliners, you're in very safe hands. In the United States, there are 0.07 fatalities per billion passenger miles, which translates like this: If you fly 500 miles every day for a year, you have a fatality risk of one in 85,000. In short, flying is, by far, the safest mode of transit.