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Driving Global Warming: Commuting in Connecticut and its Contribution to Global Warming 2006-02-07 drivinggw.pdf

Executive Summary

As the new home of ConnPIRG's environmental work, Environment Connecticut can be contacted regarding this report. 

Transportation is the leading source of global warming pollution in Connecticut, and trips to and from work are a major part of the problem. Just over a quarter of all vehicle miles nationally are driven on trips to and from work. To reduce global warming pollution from cars and trucks – and to meet the goals of the state’s climate change action plan – Connecticut must find ways to reduce the global warming impact of commuting.

A review of data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau identifies which towns in the state are responsible for the greatest amount of commuting-related emissions of carbon dioxide (the leading cause of global warming) and suggests ways that the state can effectively reduce emissions.

Commuters in Connecticut’s fast-growing “exurbs” produce about three times more carbon dioxide, on average, than commuters living in Connecticut’s more densely developed cities.

• Commuters living in Connecticut’s oldest and most densely developed cities – such as Hartford, New Haven, and New London – produce the lowest emissions of carbon dioxide per worker in the state. By contrast, fast-growing “exurban” communities produce much greater per capita levels of emissions. (See Fig. ES-1.)

Drive-alone trips produce the majority of commuting- related global warming pollution in Connecticut.

• About four out of every five Connecticut commuters drive to work alone. Towns with the greatest proportion of drive-alone commuters also tend to have the highest per-worker global warming emissions from commuting.

• While Connecticut has an extensive rail network, it fails to serve adequately the state’s centers of employment. Although four of the five largest cities in Connecticut are located along the state’s rail network, the majority of commuters traveling to these cities drive alone to work – less than 4 percent of these commuters ride the train. (See Fig. ES-2.)

Good transit service can reduce carbon dioxide emissions from commuting. For example, only 17 percent of commutes to Manhattan (the leading out-of-state draw for Connecticut commuters) occur via single-passenger automobile, leading to significantly lower emissions from these commutes.

• Commuters traveling into New York City make up the majority (78 percent) of all Connecticut commuters who ride commuter rail to work. The effectiveness of the regional rail network in transporting commuters to New York City should serve as a platform for increasing transit to communities located along the regional rail network and reducing Connecticut’s total carbon dioxide emissions.

Connecticut should take a series of immediate and long-term actions to reduce global warming pollution from commuting. The state should fully implement the state’s Climate Change Action Plan, which includes numerous policies for reducing global warming pollution from all forms of vehicle travel. Specific areas of focus should include:

• Extending the regional transit network to promote connections with residential and work locations in neighboring states and in areas currently underserved by transit.

• Encouraging transit-oriented development, improving transit service to centers of employment located along the existing regional rail network, and making the state’s rail stations more accessible.

• Putting the brakes on exurban development in rural areas by revitalizing Connecticut’s urban areas and encouraging compact, mixed-use development.

• Adopting vehicle global warming emission standards and incentives for the purchase of vehicles that produce less carbon dioxide per mile.