UPS Reduces CO2 Emissions
I’m constantly surprised by the creative ways people have found to reduce carbon emissions, but a recent New York Times article blew me away. UPS has done their part by reducing the number of left-hand turns its drivers have to make. A single, brown delivery truck sitting idly waiting for the light to turn green so it can turn left doesn’t contribute very much CO2 and you’re not saving much in terms of gas money either. However, if you have a fleet of more than 95,000 delivery trucks, their collective savings can amount to huge savings and reductions in carbon emissions. The software UPS uses helps map routes with less left-hand turns.
How much did they save?
Last year, according to Heather Robinson, a U.P.S. spokeswoman, the software helped the company shave 28.5 million miles off its delivery routes, which has resulted in savings of roughly three million gallons of gas and has reduced CO2 emissions by 31,000 metric tons.
Now that is cool. Looks like Brown can do more than just deliver packages.
Posted on December 12, 2007 in Science
