How to use this: This one is about you, not your whole house. Pick a scenario button at the top, then use the cards below to describe how you really get around: how far school is, how you get there, how you reach practice and friends, and how much you ride in the family car. Everything updates right away. The big number is the carbon dioxide (CO₂e) your trips put into the air each year. The other tiles show what it costs, hours spent traveling, and exercise you get on the way. Try walking, biking or the bus and see what changes. When you are done, copy the link at the bottom to share your scenario with your class.
Carbon that adds up from your trips across four school years (36 weeks of school each, plus year-round activities, errands and longer trips), you vs. a typical student.
kg CO₂e per year by kind of trip, typical student in your region vs. your scenario.
Move any lever. Each change is ranked here by the kg of CO₂e it saves per year.
The link below encodes every slider. Anyone who opens it sees exactly this scenario.
Interaction pattern inspired by En-ROADS, created by Climate Interactive and MIT Sloan. Companion to the Household Carbon Simulator and the other wann.org simulators. Independent model, not affiliated with any transit agency or school.
Everything runs in your browser. Each kind of trip is miles × an emission factor for the way you travel. School trips count 36 weeks a year; activities and errands count all 52. Costs use the prices you enter. Time uses typical city speeds plus a short wait for buses, trains and ride-hail. Active minutes count only walking and biking.
My Transportation Simulator compares the yearly cost, time and carbon of how your household gets around: gas car, hybrid, EV, bus, train, bike, walking and ride-hailing. It is set up for Los Angeles and Santa Monica trips by default, with Metro and Big Blue Bus fares, and you can switch regions.
Vehicle emissions use EPA’s 2025 GHG Emission Factors Hub and Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies references. EV emissions use EPA eGRID regional grid factors. Trip patterns use the 2022 National Household Travel Survey. Driving costs use AAA’s 2025 Your Driving Costs, transit fares use LA Metro and Big Blue Bus, ride-hailing impacts use Union of Concerned Scientists research, and activity guidance comes from the CDC.
Key sources:
In most cases yes. California’s grid is cleaner than the national average, so charging an EV usually creates far less carbon per mile than burning gasoline.
AAA estimates the full cost of owning and driving a new car at many thousands of dollars a year once you add fuel, insurance, depreciation and maintenance.
Often not. Research from the Union of Concerned Scientists found ride-hailing trips can create more pollution than driving yourself because of empty miles between rides.
Yes. The simulator counts them as zero-emission trips and also shows the active minutes you gain.
See all Transportation guides →
Built and reviewed by the Accessible Sustainability Alliance, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit operated by the Wann Heritage Foundation. Last updated October 5, 2026. Results are estimates for education and planning. Questions or corrections: contact@wann.org.