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If 10,000 Biters opt for a Prius car service for a 20-mi trip, we'll avert the yearly CO2 emissions of almost 6 Americans.

COCKTAIL FACT

And the award for the most Best Actor nominations without a single win goes to...Peter O'Toole, who's been nominated eight times.

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home › tip library › Eco Car Services

Did your invite to the Oscars mysteriously get lost in the mail?

The Bite

Not again. But whether you're attending or just heading to a local party, you can arrive in style using an eco-limo service. (Yeah, yeah, we know public transportation is more eco, but you won't see George Clooney rolling up in a bus anytime soon.)

The Benefits

Red-carpet readiness. Get where you're going in a hot new hybrid or a converted alternative-fuel luxury vehicle.
Winning best actor in an environmental role. Example: Natural gas creates 20%-30% less CO2 than gasoline.
Prices that noncelebs can afford. Eco-limos cost $20-$85 per hour - similar to typical car service pricing.

Personally Speaking

We just want to say thank you to all of our fans - without you, we never woulda made it this far [insert air kisses here]!

Wanna Try?

Eco-Limo - get around LA, SF, or DC in one of seven car options, including a Lexus 400h or Mercedes E320 ($45-$85/hr).
Elite Green Car - chauffeurs you around Atlanta in a Lexus RX 400 ($56/hr).
Green Limousine - a biodiesel Ford Excursion helps you hit the slopes in CO ($70-$80/hr).
Green Car Limo - SF and Monterey, CA service, mostly stocked with Camrys and Priuses ($60/hr).
LimoGreen - runs a NYC-area fleet of natural gas-powered Lincoln Towncars ($55/hr).
Bauer's Limousine - green corporate service in NorCal, including electric buses (prices vary).

Feb 22,2008

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All editorial suggestions in this tip are the result of testing and a preference for the tip topic. No advertiser has paid to have its company referenced in the tip. For more information, please read our Editorial Policy.

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I Get It: Just Because You Drive a Hybrid Doesn’t Mean You Love Liberal Hollywood

I don't think I've been in a stretch limo since prom, and though I see a lot of them while walking Bay Area streets, they never stop for me.

However, I have taken plenty of hybrid cabs and car services. I took one home from after-work drinks on Tuesday (it's Strong Beer Month in SF, btw). Having had two glasses of 11% alcohol-content beer, I was feeling friendly, so I asked the driver if he liked his Prius. He said he liked it, and then went off for the rest of the ride (which I swear he drove as slowly as possible) about Robert Redford buying up all the land in MT, and how that was not OK. I don't really have an opinion on Robert Redford, but if I'd been in a stretch limo I would've activated the tinted privacy window.

It seems like when celebrities speak up on issues like the environment, the public feels like those stars had better be morally righteous on every issue. Personally, I think it's great when famous people use their fame to bring attention to bigger issues. Nobody's perfect.

-Toshio...off to use my legs as transportation...

Biter Comments...

I agree. Celebreties who speak out for worthy causes should be celebrated even if they are lacking in other areas. I have had the good fortune to represent a hybrid chauffeur service called EnviroCar in Phoenix (envirocarphx.com) for the past year and local celebrities have been some of our best clients. Even if some of them are just paying lip service to the whole idea of cleaning up the environment it is nice to see that they are doing something. The fact is that people listen to celebrities on a host of issues and if they are out there with a good message it really shouldn't matter if they fall short in other areas. I am sure that we all support causes that we are very proud to be a part of despite having a couple of blemishes in other areas and I don't think we (normal people) should get any less credit for the good things we do so why should celebrities be any different.

Posted by: Justin Sullivan | February 22, 2008 at 10:24 AM

I usually wonder whenever I see a celebrity on TV in a PSA (public-service announcement) for, like, mentoring, for example, if that celebrity is a mentor themselves. Of course, we do know that there ARE celebrities who practice what they preach, particularly where the environment is concerned, like Robert Redford and Ed Begley, Jr. (Have you heard about the friendly eco-house competition between Ed Begley, Jr. and his new neighbor, Bill Nye the Science Guy, to see which one can have the more environmentally-friendly domicile?) As for Robert Redford buying up ALL the land in Montana, I don't THINK so. Doesn't Ted Turner also own a good sized chunk of Montana real estate, unless "The Mouth of the South" Turner sold out to Redford and I didn't hear about it.

Posted by: Linda | February 22, 2008 at 10:41 AM

Has anyone looked at the environmental cost of manufacturing those hybrid cars? The carbon footprint from making one Prius is hugely greater than that of making a Hummer H2. It comes from the manufacture of those cadmium batteries. I'll stick with my motorcycle...

Posted by: Carol | February 22, 2008 at 01:18 PM

Okay, I will admit that I appreciate that celebs spend some of their monies on green choices, regardless whether it is using wind turbines to heat their garage, or bagging their rubbish in biodegradable bags, but does that matter when I make my buying choices? Absolutely not. I would prefer that celebs use their star power to convince rental car companies to go green, or utility companies to utilze more cost-inefficient(at present) alternatives to fossil fuels to generate electricity, or jet engine manufacturers to join the "must go green" fray.

Posted by: Roger Harris | February 22, 2008 at 04:23 PM

While I agree with your comment, you aren't necessarily correct with your assessment that what Robert Redford did was a good thing. I'm a Montanan and have studied land practice issues in areas where the land was split between working ranchers and celebrity land. Sure, it's great that Mr. Redford is putting land aside to conserve--that, I can agree on. But Montana's heritage is in ranching, and the prairie has co-evolved with buffalo (and, to a certain extent, cows). In fact, when land is bought by people without the intention of ranching (usually, wealthy people), the land becomes a festival for noxious weeds. It also disrupts the neighbor's way of life. So, to Montanans, it is better to purchase land to work the land, which both keeps the land open and preserves state heritage. Check out efforts in the Deer Lodge Valley--a non-profit called the Clark Fork Coalition is working with local ranchers on economic issues and on ways to "green" their ranching practices.

Posted by: Deaner | February 22, 2008 at 04:57 PM