London’s busiest roads are back to pre-pandemic levels according to data from traffic index TomTom, who also report that congestion last month reached 61 per cent, close to the levels recorded in 2019 of 63 per cent.

Not only that but the average Londoner wastes 115 hours stuck in traffic every year. That’s over 4 days of wasted time and unnecessary pollution of harmful emissions into the air we breathe and the places we call home.

In a month which has seen fuel shortages sweep the nation and a subsequent hike in prices – is it time to switch the way we travel to the more sustainable alternative of shared electric mobility, particularly for shorter journeys across our cities?

In the UK alone, air pollution is linked to 40,000 early deaths every year – with cars being the biggest contributor.

By ditching the car and travelling across the city by e-scooter, not only could precious time be saved, but harmful emissions reduced, and air quality improved in built up cities.

In the heart of the capital, TIER, one of London’s chosen e-scooter operators, came together with well-known climate and environmental advocates to highlight just how wasteful spending 115 hours inside a car can be; launching their beat traffic for good initiative in the UK on World Car Free Day.

Fred Jones, TIER’s Regional General Manager for Northern Europe, says “If the events of the last few weeks have taught us anything, it’s that a more sustainable mode of transport is the way forward, especially when making our way round built-up cities for those shorter journeys. Through raising awareness of these stark statistics, and the sheer amount of time wasted in traffic every year, we hope we can make real change in our cities across the globe and combat pollution for good.”

TIER’s worldwide events aim to encourage people to lower emissions by swapping short car journeys for emission-free modes of transport. So far well-known climate activists and opinion-leaders have spent 520 hours across Paris, Oslo, Gothenburg, Berlin and London, protesting against heavy congestion and emissions from car usage.