Los viajes frecuentes en bicicleta son ecológicos; en cambio, volar contamina.

Questions & Answers about Los viajes frecuentes en bicicleta son ecológicos; en cambio, volar contamina.

Why use en cambio here instead of pero?
En cambio specifically highlights a contrast between two distinct situations or things, much like "on the other hand" or "whereas" in English. While you could use pero (but) to connect these ideas, en cambio is a great way to emphasize the direct comparison between the eco-friendliness of biking and the pollution of flying.
Why is it volar (to fly) instead of a word ending in -ando or -iendo to mean "flying"?
In Spanish, when an action acts as a noun (like the subject of a sentence), you always use the infinitive form (volar). English uses the "-ing" form for this ("flying pollutes"), but Spanish never uses its "-ing" equivalent (the gerund) as a noun.
Why do we say en bicicleta rather than por bicicleta?
When talking about means of transportation, Spanish almost always uses the preposition en. You travel en bicicleta (by bike), en coche (by car), or en tren (by train).
Why is contamina in the singular "he/she/it" form here?
The subject of the verb contamina (pollutes) is the action of flying (volar). Whenever an infinitive verb is the subject of a sentence, it is treated as a singular noun, so the verb that follows must be in the third-person singular form.

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