Car Sharing ..... Green Option for Extended Travel

Car sharing is a great alternative to renting a car if you're on an extended stay vacation or assigned to an area for a few weeks or more. Not only is car sharing usually less expensive, most car sharing companies offer hybrids (which are on a "request only" basis with rental companies), you pay hourly for the car which means that you're trips will more than likely be consolidated.

Car sharing programs are not new, but a new player has come into the market with an eye to be a major player in the global car sharing market. Rental company Hertz recently introduced their car sharing program- Connect by Hertz. London, Paris, and New York are the first markets to experience Hertz's new program but plans are under way for expansion into 20 more cities across North America and Europe.

Zip Car is probably the most known car share program in the United States with cars in over 50 locations. Travelers looking for a car share program that isn't serviced by one of the larger car share providers should look for a local company like Hour Car which serves Minneapolis/St. Paul.

Union of Concerned Scientist Greenest Way to Travel Report!!!

Until now, travelers haven't had a resource to find the best way to travel. With so many different factors, it's tough to find the greenest route. Is it better if you have 2 people in a car to drive 1,000 miles or would you be better off flying? Isn't going by train always the best? The Union of Concerned Scientists just released the findings of their report on the greenest way to travel today... Travel Quest is proud to have been the travel agency on hand to answer travel itinerary questions for the press release! You can listen to an audio recording of the press conference here.

While the report is a hefty read, it is also full of great facts and is going to be a tremendous asset to those looking for a green travel resource other than carbon calculators. I've taken the highlights of the report below:

Travel options are rated best on top to worst on the bottom....

Best Travel Options: Solo Traveler
100 miles
Take motor coach
Take train
Fly economy
Drive typical car
Drive typical SUV
Fly first-class

500 miles
Take motor coach
Take train
Fly economy
Drive typical car
Fly first-class
Drive typical SUV

1,000+ miles
Take motor coach
Fly economy
Take train
Fly first-class
Drive typical car
Drive typical SUV

Best Travel Options: Two Travelers
100 miles
Take motor coach
Take train
Drive typical car
Drive typical SUV
Fly economy
Fly first-class

500 miles
Take motor coach
Take train
Drive typical car
Fly economy
Drive typical SUV
Fly first-class

1,000+ miles
Take motor coach
Fly economy
Take train
Drive typical car
Drive typical SUV
Fly first-class

Best Travel Options: Family of Four
100 miles
Take motor coach
Drive typical car
Drive typical SUV
Take train
Fly economy
Fly first-class

500 miles
Take motor coach
Drive typical car
Drive typical SUV
Take train
Fly economy
Fly first-class

1,000+ miles
Take motor coach
Drive typical car
Drive typical SUV
Fly economy
Take train
Fly first-class

So there you have it, trains isn't always best and a much forgot about form of travel- motor coach- comes out on top! To view the full report please visit the Union of Concerned Scientists website.