Global Warming Program Reports
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Executive Summary
As the new home of RIPIRG's environmental work, Environment Rhode Island can be contacted regarding this report.
Transportation is the leading source of global
warming pollution in Rhode Island, accounting
for more than a third of the state’s global
warming emissions. The trips state residents make to
and from work are a major contributor to the problem.
Just over a quarter of all vehicle miles nationally
are driven on trips to and from work. To reduce global
warming emissions from cars and trucks, Rhode
Island must find ways to reduce the global warming
impact of commuting.
In order to find the right policy options for confronting
global warming emissions from commuting, it is
necessary to know who is commuting where and by
what mode of transportation. An analysis based on
data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau identifies
which towns in the Ocean State produce the greatest
amount of carbon dioxide (the leading cause of global
warming) from commuting and suggests ways that
the state can effectively reduce emissions.
Commuters traveling to Providence and its immediate
suburbs for work generate nearly two-thirds of
all carbon dioxide emissions among commuters
working in Rhode Island.
• Commuters traveling to the inner suburbs of Providence
(those located within five miles of the city)
are responsible for more than a third of Rhode
Island’s commuting-related carbon dioxide emissions,
while commuters traveling to Providence
itself generate about one-quarter of the state’s commuting
emissions. (See Fig. ES-1.)
The average commuter living in small but fast-growing
towns in western Rhode Island produces two to
three times more carbon dioxide from his or her commute
than the average commuter living in more
densely developed communities.
• Commuters living in densely developed areas (such
as Providence, Newport and Pawtucket) produce
some of the lowest per-worker emissions in the
state. In contrast, less densely developed communities,
especially western towns such as West Greenwich
and Foster, are responsible for significantly
larger amounts of per-commuter emissions. (See
Fig. ES-2.) These are some of the fastest growing
communities in the state and this trend has significant
potential impacts on carbon dioxide emissions
in the future.
Commuting trips across state lines are a significant
contributor to global warming. Commuters who
travel between Rhode Island and neighboring states
generate two and a half times more emissions, on
average, than commuters who live and work in
Rhode Island.
• Rhode Island residents commuting out of state
produce 22 percent of the emissions generated by
people living in Rhode Island. Similarly, out-ofstate
residents traveling to Rhode Island are responsible
for 9 percent of the carbon dioxide emissions
generated by people working in Rhode Island.
These interstate trips generate significantly more
global warming pollution per commuter than trips
made within Rhode Island. (See Fig. ES-3.)
Carbon dioxide emissions from transportation can
be cut by reducing per-mile emissions from cars and
light trucks, encouraging people to live closer to their
place of work, shifting more commuting away from
drive-alone trips, and fostering pedestrian commuting
and home-based work.
• Fully implementing recently adopted standards for
carbon dioxide emissions from cars and light trucks
would reduce commuting-related global warming
pollution from all drivers in the state. The standards
would reduce global warming emissions from
cars and light trucks by about 12 percent below
projected levels by 2020.
• Regardless of their location within the state, towns
where commuters make fewer drive-alone trips and
are more likely to use transportation alternatives –
such as transit, walking or riding a bike to work –
have lower per-worker emissions of carbon dioxide
from commuting. Encouraging greater use of
carpooling, transit and other alternatives would
reduce the global warming impact of commuting
in Rhode Island.
Rhode Island should take a series of immediate and
long-term actions to reduce global warming emissions
from commuting. Among other actions, the
state should:
• Ensure full implementation of vehicle global warming
emissions standards and other measures to encourage
the purchase of vehicles that produce less
carbon dioxide per mile.
• Expand commuter rail service down the west side
of Narragansett Bay to allow suburban commuters
to more easily utilize commuter rail to the Boston
metropolitan area. Construction of the
proposed commuter rail stations in Warwick, near
the T.F. Green Airport, and at Wickford Junction
would be good first steps towards expanding the
regional rail network.
• Improve transit connections to allow suburban
commuters to more easily utilize commuter rail
for commutes to and from both the Providence
metropolitan area and Massachusetts towns that
are connected to the Boston metropolitan commuter
rail network.
• Hold suburban workplaces accountable for the
carbon dioxide emissions they generate by requiring
employers to implement commute-trip reduction
programs.
• Encourage carpooling, vanpooling and other programs
that reduce the number of drive-alone commutes,
while discouraging projects that increase
highway capacity to allow more single-passenger
commuting.
• Put the brakes on exurban development in rural
areas by encouraging urban redevelopment, the
creation of affordable housing, and mixed-use planning
in new and existing suburbs.
• Develop programs to encourage residents to live
near their workplaces and to encourage employers
to implement telecommuting.
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