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INTRODUCTION << HOMES << WATER << STUFF << TRAVEL >> FOOD >> COMMUNITY
In Southampton, a third of households don’t have access to a car. How can our travel choices help create a city that is easy for everyone to move around and where the air is clean and streets belong to people?
DRIVING
Choose the smallest car that meets your needs, for lower emissions, materials, wear and tear on road – and easier parking! Electric cars are less polluting and produce less carbon dioxide, but they still use lots of resources, and mining the minerals for batteries can be very polluting, so it can be better to keep your existing car until it needs scrapping. Simply replacing all petrol and diesel cars with electric ones won’t reduce congestion!
SAVING fuel (AND MONEY)
Keep tyres pumped to correct pressure.
Remove roof racks when not in use.
Drive at a steady speed – avoid rapid acceleration and braking.
Switch off engine when stationary.
Open a window for “air-conditioning”.
For short journeys walk, bus or cycle. See My Journey Southampton for links to public transport, walking and cycling routes around the city: myjourneysouthampton.com
SHARE A CAR
If your mileage is less than 6000 miles/year it can actually be cheaper to hire, join a car club or use taxis.
Southampton: Need a lift? (facebook group for lift sharing) https://www.facebook.com/groups/521486294699081/
Enterprise Car Club (hire a car, several offices in Southampton) https://www.enterprisecarclub.co.uk/gb/en/home.html
BlaBla Car (car sharing platform, also offers some cheap bus rides) https://www.blablacar.co.uk/
Hiyacar (peer to peer car rental) https://www.hiyacar.co.uk/
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
My Journey Southampton (links to public transport, walking and cycling routes around the city including journey planner) https://myjourneysouthampton.com/
Breeze app (allows you to plan your journey and even buy tickets) https://breezeuk.app
Visit one of Southampton’s 9 railway stations for tickets and travel for tickets and travel advice or use an online rail planner for cheap advance tickets, eg https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/
BUSES
Southampton is served by:
Bluestar (travel shop at 14 Bargate St, SO14 2DA) https://www.bluestarbus.co.uk/
Unilink https://www.unilinkbus.co.uk/
Xelabus https://www.xelacoach.info/
ACTIVE TRAVEL
Plan your route around the city to avoid air pollution https://www.sotonairmap.com/
Hire e-bikes or e-scooters via the Breeze app https://breezeuk.app/
Cycle Travel Southampton (bike routes around Southampton) https://cycle.travel/city/southampton
Register your bike to help track if if it’s stolen https://www.bikeregister.com/
GETTING A BIKE (See also bike shops in the repairs and spares section of the Southampton Sustainability Directory)
Montys Bike Hub bike recycling project 59 Montague Avenue, Sholing SO19 0QB https://montysbikehub.org/
Convert to electric with Cytronex (Winchester) https://www.cytronex.com/
BIKE TUITION
For new and returning cyclists, tuition makes all the difference.
Sound Cycling soundcycling.co.uk 07952 314 768
Monty’s Bike Hub (family cycle skills workshops) https://montysbikehub.org/
BIKE REPAIR (See also bike shops in the repairs and spares section of the Southampton Sustainability Directory)
Southampton Repair Cafe includes bike repair https://transitionsouthampton.org/projects-repair-cafe/
Southampton Bike Kitchen (fix your own bike under supervision) every Wednesday 7-9pm at The Hub Cycleworks, The Hub Cycleworks, Unit 12 Belgrave Industrial Estate, SO17 3EA southamptonbikekitchen.wordpress.com
Montys Bike Hub (Bike Dr and learn to maintain and fix your own bike) 59 Montague Avenue, Sholing SO19 0QB montys.org.uk/bike-hub
See also https://myjourneysouthampton.com/cycle/looking-after-your-bike
RIDING WITH OTHERS
Southampton Cargo Bikes (regular short family-friendly rides around the city – you don’t need a cargo bike or a family to join in!) https://www.facebook.com/groups/Southamptoncargobicycles
Breeze Rides (gentle rides which aim to get women cycling for fun) https://www.letsride.co.uk/breeze
Kidical Mass (family friendly massed rides) https://www.facebook.com/KidicalMassSouthampton
See also https://myjourneysouthampton.com/cycle
Southampton Cycling Campaign (rides, socials and more. Works with city council officers to improve cycling facilities; free membership) https://www.southamptoncyclingcampaign.org.uk/ For events and rides see https://www.sotoncan.org.uk/calendar/
Southampton Cyclists’ Touring Club (CTC) (longer rides, i.e. 10 or more miles) https://southamptonctc.wordpress.com/
LEISURE TRAVEL
There’s no avoiding the fact that flying is the most environmentally damaging form of transport. Sadly we won’t have genuinely ‘sustainable aviation fuel’ or electric and hydrogen planes any time soon.
But a ‘holiday’ doesn’t have to mean flying abroad! There are many attractive and interesting places within easy public transport reach of Southampton, or you can make train travel part of your holiday on the continent. Plenty of advice from Flight Free UK https://flightfree.co.uk/how_to/ or The Man in Seat Sixty One https://www.seat61.com/
Green Tourism (directory of ‘green’ UK holidays, attractions and hotels) https://www.green-tourism.com/
Find places to walk in Southampton and Hampshire, including nature and history trails, Health Walks https://myjourneysouthampton.com/walk
Southampton Ramblers https://www.ramblers.org.uk/go-walking/ramblers-groups/southampton-group
See Southampton https://www.seesouthampton.co.uk/
Walking Meetups in Southampton (groups and events in Southampton – search on ‘Walking’ and ‘Southampton’) https://www.meetup.com/
Go Jauntly walking app https://www.gojauntly.com/
Air alert (free service to let you know when air pollution is bad, so you can stay indoors to take extra care to use inhalers) https://airalert.info/Hants/
Links to other sections:
INTRODUCTION << HOMES << WATER << STUFF << TRAVEL >> FOOD >> COMMUNITY