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On Thursday, June 16, 2011, COLTS will participate in the Sixth Annual Dump the Pump Day. This is a national event for public transit agencies all across the country to promote public transportation as an environmentally friendly and affordable way to travel.
There are many ways to Dump the Pump – ride the bus, walk, ride a bike, carpool. We hope that you will participate in Dumping the Pump as a way to fight high gas prices and to help the environment.
COLTS is proud to take part in Dump the Pump for the third year in a row. We will offer free rides on all our routes all day long on June 16. COLTS staff will be downtown at the Wyoming Avenue bus hub with special giveaways for COLTS riders.
Facts & Figures
- The National Safety Council reports that taking the bus is 170 times safer that driving or riding in a car.
- Using public transportation saves money. People who choose public transportation save, on average $9,904 annually and $825 monthly based on the March 2, 2011 average national price per gallon reported by AAA and the national unreserved parking rate.
- If every person in Lackawanna County left their car at home and took public transit for one day, we would save 8,500 gallons of gas on a one-way trip.
- Using public transit can save 4.2 billion gallons of gasoline each year – the equivalent of 900,000 cars filling up every day.
- One full COLTS bus could remove 30 cars from the road.
- An individual who switches to public transportation can reduce his or her carbon emissions by 20 pounds – more than 4,800 pounds a year. This is equal to a 10 percent reduction in a two-car household.
- Public transit use reduces the country’s carbon footprint by 37 million metric tons annually.
- Public transportation reduced stress and decreases congestion on busy roadways.
- For every $1 billion invested in public transportation, 30,000 jobs are created.
Information compiled from American Public Transportation Association, National Safety Council, and COLTS.
Helpful Web Sites:
Fuel Cost Calculator •
Carbon Footprint Calculator
Fuel Economy Information •
EPA’s Household Emissions Calculator
American Public Transportation Association •
Pennsylvania Public Transportation Association