Bloomberg's subway ride begins inside SUV

NEW YORK, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- Some critics complain that much of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's daily commute is spent in an SUV rather than riding public transportation.

Bloomberg, who famously rides the subway to and from City Hall, is driven from his home to an express subway station 22 blocks away by a pair of gas-guzzling Chevrolet Suburbans -- despite the presence of a subway station a short walk from his home, The New York Times reported Wednesday.

"The Suburban is one of the worst, if not the worst" sport utility vehicles on the market in terms of pollution, said Dan Becker, who studies vehicle emissions for the Sierra Club. "It's way up there."

However, Bloomberg spokesman Stu Loeser pushed aside the idea that Bloomberg's SUV drives to the express station separate him from the average New York strap-hanger.

"The mayor rides the subway like anyone else," he said. "Zips his card through, stands on the platform, and waits for a train to come."

Loeser also defended Bloomberg's transport in the SUVs, saying they used cleaner-burning E85 ethanol fuel in New York and whenever possible while traveling.