Column: Jemima Parker, Zero Carbon Harrogate - Can Harrogate take the jump and travel fresh?

​June sees Better Transport Week; Green Transport Week and Bike Week all encouraging us to choose greener travel options.

According to government statistics, a massive 49 per cent of carbon emissions in the Harrogate area, stem from on the ground travel, (incidentally, this is much higher than the national figure of 36 per cent), with only 0.5 per cent generated by public transport.

So, it’s no surprise that travel is a big focus of attention for those organisations involved in the transition to a sustainable economy.

In Harrogate and Knaresborough, the average distance travelled by car is surprisingly short, at just 1.6 miles.

Most of us could comfortably walk that in 30 minutes, and when you consider the time it takes to get through Harrogate traffic and park up, are we really saving that much time by taking the car?

Of course, cycling is even quicker, often much faster than crawling along in traffic.

‘Take the Jump’ is a growing national movement of people from all backgrounds who are doing their best to make a positive impact by making six important shifts in their lives.

One of those shifts is to ‘Travel Fresh’ by reducing their reliance on private vehicles and instead choosing to walk, cycle, car-share or use public transport.

As we work towards ‘taking the jump’ could you try one of these options to travel fresh and be less car dependent?

Do one less car trip a week by leaving enough time to walk, cycle or take the bus.

Why not take a slow jog and tick off one of your exercise goals for the week?

Replace a work meeting with a video or phone call.

Pick a leisure activity close to home that you can walk to.

If you make a trip, make it worth it; plan in a visit to the shops at the same time as a trip to the dentist.

Lift share and save fuel.

Check out liftshare.com/uk to find out who lives near to you and does a similar commute.

If you are ready to ditch your car completely, join the Co Wheels Harrogate Car Club - it’s a great way to have access to a car without the cost and hassle of ownership.

When you do have to use the car, consider your fellow road-users – give pedestrians priority, give cyclists space and park responsibly.

Remember, we’re all just trying to get somewhere safely.

Follow ZCH on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and find out about our regular Walk to School and car-free events.

Find out more about how you can Travel Fresh at www.takethejump.org and don’t forget to let us know how you get on on our ZCH social channels.

Have your say on congestion, noise and air pollution by responding to North Yorkshire Council’s Let’s Talk Travel consultation by July 17.