[unoczar]

Hello Friends,

We keep discussing about all the traffic problems we have and then all the pollution that is caused by increasing traffic. I thought we at TBHP should take a step in the right direction and given that there are thousands of members here and many more visit anonymously, we should start a move which can help the society and kind of give back to mother earth.

What i propose is, one day in a week we wont use our cars/bikes not even autos, we go in public transport, buses, MMTS (hyd), METRO (delhi, etc.). May be some of us could walk if office is ~2-3 km. This way thousands of people all over the country can celebrate one "ENgine OFF day" per week and actually help others a lot.

What do you say friends? We could also have another TBHP sticker saying probably "I walk to office on xxxx day".

Can we please have BHPians thoughts on this and MODS too.

Thanks.

[DRIV3R]

This concept is already in place at the IT hub of India, Bangalore. It's called 'Bus Day'.

Techies are encouraged to use the bus as their mode of transport that day, leaving behind their cars and bikes at home!

[Reisender]

Good Idea & initiative... But it is not possible for all of our members. eg, i have to travel around 25kms one way and i have to change 3 buses to reach office.
By the time i reach - 1) i will damn tired, 2) it will be at least 2.5 hrs from the time i started.
Too bad is that i can't help in this.
But, for a contribution to env. point of view, i take my bike once a week. More FE means less pollution (am i right? fellows).

Thanks,
Kottee

[mjothi]

Originally Posted by Reisender

Good Idea & initiative... But it is not possible for all of our members. eg, i have to travel around 25kms one way and i have to change 3 buses to reach office.
By the time i reach - 1) i will damn tired, 2) it will be at least 2.5 hrs from the time i started.
Too bad is that i can't help in this.
But, for a contribution to env. point of view, i take my bike once a week. More FE means less pollution (am i right? fellows).

Thanks,
Kottee

Agreed. As you mentioned not all can afford a weekday without car for office.

But I am sure we can contribute a lot if we decide to walk to the near by shops in the morning, evening and weekends. That should solve a great problem, especially cities like bangalore where we run out of roads, and parking place too.

Healthier, and lighter on pocket too.

EDIT: I use my cycle for majority of the days to my office.

[unoczar]

A couple of nice thoughts there, but have you guys considered the local trains and stuff? A friend uses the local train here in hyderabad extensively!

How about metro/local in bangalore, implemented yet?

I use my bike for almost all intercity stuff. I even go to the outskirts on it, now that the roads have improved a lot, its a great feeling to ride too!

I use my car only if more than 2 need to travel, or if mom needs to go somewhere. OR when its raining..

[rohan_iitr]

I try my best not to use the car on Saturday and Sunday.

Also I don't use the car for short distances <10 kms. I use the bike for distances of 5-10kms and use my legs for distances <5 kms.

I also car pool on weekdays. 4 of us travel to the office in 1 car.

Rohan

[ch.nathan]

I follow engine-off-day every weekend - well almost 90% of the weekends.

To be honest, it's not because I want to reduce global warming or pollution. It's just because I am sick of driving (and parking) in Bangalore over the weekends.

[mobike008]

Nice concept but tough to follow in real life.

My simple contribution is I work from home most Fridays. So ENGINE OFF on Fridays.

And, I enjoy riding my bike for small chores around the vicinity of my home!

[unoczar]

Nice, very nice. Guys, see, every drop counts. If each one of us can do one small bit, that would go a long way. That carpool thing is very interesting!

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Nice concept but tough to follow in real life.

My simple contribution is I work from home most Fridays. So ENGINE OFF on Fridays.

And, I enjoy riding my bike for small chores around the vicinity of my home!

Using the same concept, it's ENGINE OFF 2 times a week for me, and sometimes once a week. From April till date, I've had the engine off for 46 days. Good for the environment, and for the pocket too!

[asdon]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Nice concept but tough to follow in real life.

My simple contribution is I work from home most Fridays. So ENGINE OFF on Fridays.

And, I enjoy riding my bike for small chores around the vicinity of my home!

+1 to that, I work from home 3 days a week, for almost 70% of the weeks. I tried volvos and other non AC buses, but the problem is, there are not many buses going towards my office(Electronic City) from my home(Whitefield), yes there are 500s, but then 3 buses while going, and its even worse while comming back, so I have the better option of WFH.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by unoczar

...one day in a week we wont use our cars/bikes not even autos...

All those savings in GHG and reduction in carbon footprint that I do on those days that I don't turn on the engine, I end up blowing it all (and more) with those HC & CO emissions I leave behind on the highways.

No, I won't cycle to Hyderabad the next time. What other option do I have for my roadtrips?

[rohan_iitr]

Originally Posted by unoczar

Nice, very nice. Guys, see, every drop counts. If each one of us can do one small bit, that would go a long way. That carpool thing is very interesting!

Car pooling is a common concept here in Bangalore, especially for people working in areas like Electronics City, which are slightly away from the main city.

Car pooling is one of the best ways to reduce your carbon footprint and fuel bills. I really wish that more people get involved in car pooling.

Rohan

[tj123]

Travelling by Public transport Bus for me is quite cumbersome as I have to change buses and then for last mile connectivity I have to depend on the dreaded autos fellows. So public transport is no-no for me.
I use my old work horse Unicorn most of the time. Riding a bike saves me lot of time as I can navigated easily through the terrible Bangalore traffic and off course I save a lot on fuel ,prevent pollution by burning less gas and occupy less space on road.

Car usage is restricted to weekend trevel when I have to carry around stuff like weekend grocery or travelling along with kids.

[gotiyaa]

I am with you unoczar. Being in Gurgaon, I can walk 2-3 kms from my home and then take the metro and then a rickshaw to reach office. In my opinion, Friday is the lightest day and can be the engine off day. I am following it from tomorrow. Great idea. Lets reduce smoke.