Car hire becoming more and more green
The fuel crunch of a few years ago forced many airlines into cost-cutting mode in order to boost results by lowering fuel consumption which led to fewer emissions, which is good news for the environment.
In the airline industry, both Airbus and Boeing are constantly releasing new jets with their main selling point being fuel efficiency, and hotels are now opting for power-saving fittings such as energy efficient lights and water conservation.
But it’s not just the air travel air travel that has been forced to move towards green policies in order to reduce carbon emissions.
Car hire companies are now offering more fuel efficient cars and methods to reduce carbon emissions, if for no other reason to meet the demands of both business and vacationing customers not interested in spending huge amounts on petrol. Companies such as Hertz, Avis and Budget now offer fleets of hybrid and flex-fuel (ethanol) cars for rent at many locations around the US and the UK.
In fact, one US car hire company, Advantage Rent-A-Car has pledged to turn 100 per cent of its rental fleet green by 2010.
Although renting a hybrid car generally costs about $5 to $15 more per day than the equivalent petrol-fuelled car, prices are expected to even out as time goes by.
