Based on published figures, there are appoximately one billion passenger cars in use on our planet.

Apparently, the average anount of carbon dioxide each one pours into the atmosphere in the UK is 4.7 metric tonnes per annum.

A published report states that by reducing the national speed limit to 50mph we would save about 15% of their fuel consumption.

I frequently get overtaken by cars doing 90 mph so there’s nothing extraordinary about that! In the 1970s fuel shortages made HMG enforce a maximum speed of 50mph and a 3 day week!

In Paris a few years ago, pungent smog limited personal car use to alternate days. Look it up!

If therefore, the world’s billion car owners travelled at less than 50mph and also refrained from using their cars for only one working day a week, the world’s total carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced by no less than 1,400,000,000 tonnes per annum.

Ironically, journey times would decrease!

Less servicing, less spare parts manufacture, less accidents, less pulmonary diseases, less hospital costs, less fuel transportation, less oil refining and less traffic holdups, would probably save another 15% taking the carbon emissions saved to at least 2,100,000,000 tonnes p.a. After 6 months, another day leaving the car at home each week would take it to 2,800,000,000 tonnes p.a.saved.

It won’t be long before road traffic comes to a standstill anyway. We already live in a giant ‘car park’ and a national ‘log-jam’ is on the cards. Even Dorchester comes to a halt most days!

Surely a lot quicker route to take whilst right wing corporations think about how to turn global warming into a profit opportunity, and politicians spend as little cash as possible on saving the planet but £millions on their cronies.

They have now lost every shred of respect and have done hardly anything in real terms to avoid a very nasty ending for us all while fires rage across the globe!

MIKE JOSLIN

Garfield Avenue, Dorchester