Employers should encourage lift sharing to deal with fuel crisis

In light of the ongoing fuel shortages, the Liftshare Group is calling on employers to recognise the benefits of car sharing. 

With three of the UK’s biggest fuel providers warning of fuel shortages, sites are seeing a rise in demand with some employees expressing concern about how they will get to work. 

In light of this, LiftShare is calling on employers to empower their teams to share their journey to work with a colleague. 

The group has highlighted that not only will this help to address the current fuel shortage, but it will also help to reduce emissions. 

Single occupancy vehicles are one of the UK’s biggest sources of emissions.  The commute is also one of the least efficient journeys we ever make, with commuting accounting for around 5% of the UK’s total emissions – 18 billion kg of CO2 annually. 

Ali Clabburn, CEO and founder of the Liftshare Group, said: ‘A fuel supply shortage, rising traffic levels and Covid concerns around using public transport are a perfect storm which is causing a sharp rise in Scope 3 commuter emissions.

‘Current commuting habits are not sustainable. These shortages highlight the need for change, with 47 million empty seats on our roads every rush hour. Car sharing is one of the easiest ways to mitigate the impacts of climate change, affording sharers the opportunity to reduce travel costs, minimise congestion and improve air quality in their local community.’

In related news, a new £800,000 support package will help to boost sustainable travel in Greater Manchester. 

The funding is split into two pots:

• A £250,000 pot for SMEs with fewer than 250 staff for interventions such as cycle parking, pool bikes and charging or storage solutions
• A £550,000 pot to help provide cycle parking for small businesses, NHS, Housing Associations and schools located within 400 metres of the Bee Network Cycling and Walking Schemes that are due to be delivered later this year

Photo by David Emrich