Tube 50% dearer than Rolls Royce trip

Celebrity owners of the £250,000 Rolls Royce Phantom such as David Beckham, Simon Cowell and Alan Sugar pay less to travel through central London than users of London transport; tube fares can be 50 per cent more expensive than being chauffeured by Phantom over the same distance, according to the Environmental Transport Association (ETA).

As the ETA encourages people to consider sustainable alternatives to their cars for Green Transport Week 2011 (20th – 26th June), the charity laments that high fares continue to dissuade motorists from leaving their cars at home in favour of public transport.

Luxury travel

Hire costs for Rolls Royce Phantom, arguably the most luxurious car in the world, start at £200 per hour including chauffeur – a rate that equates to £16 per mile in central London. A single tube ticket can cost as much as £24 per mile.

However, while the Rolls Royce may be cheaper than the tube and quieter than the average city car, its emissions dwarf almost every other way of travelling around London. Travelling one kilometre by Phantom emits 377g of CO2 – almost five times the amount generated by the equivalent trip by tube.

Director of the ETA, Andrew Davis, said: “Luckily for Londoners, the healthiest, greenest and quickest way of getting about is also the cheapest – cycling wins hands down.”

As well as using public transport more regularly, Green Transport Week 2011 focuses on cycling, green driving tips, walking to school and green holidays.