Improving automobile fuel economy: New standards, new approaches

Technical Report · Tue Oct 01 04:00:00 EDT 1991

OSTI ID:6027178

Congress is again engaged in a vigorous debate about the future of U.S. energy policy. Key issues in the debate are the ongoing problem of rising oil imports and their effect on national security, balance of payments, emerging concerns about global climate change, and concerns about the health and competitive stance of American industry. A major policy option in the debate, raising the efficiency of the U.S. automobile fleet by increasing new car fuel economy standards, intersects all three key issues: Oil imports and national security -- Automobiles consume about one quarter of all oil consumed by the U.S. economy and light-duty vehicles (autos plus light trucks) account for nearly four tenths of all U.S. oil consumption; Global warming; Competitiveness. The OTA report responds to a request by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources to examine the fuel economy potential of the U.S. fleet and to assist Congress in establishing new fuel economy standards. In responding to the request, the authors addressed all but the first of the issues listed above: they have not tried to determine whether new fuel economy standards would be inferior or superior to other means to improve fleet fuel economy or, in a broader context, to reduce oil use in highway passenger travel. The authors recognize that a full examination of all options open to Congress should include the examination of a variety of conservation options including gasoline taxes, traffic control plans, gas guzzler/gas sipper taxes and rebates, improvement of competing mass transportation systems, and so forth. OTA expects to address these and other options in a future study on transportation energy conservation.

• Research Organization: Office of Technology Assessment (U.S. Congress), Washington, DC (United States)
• OSTI ID: 6027178
• Report Number(s): PB-92-115989/XAB; OTA-E--504
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
291000 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Conservation
293000 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Policy
Legislation
& Regulation
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
320203* -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Transportation-- Land & Roadway
33 ADVANCED PROPULSION SYSTEMS
330100 -- Internal Combustion Engines
AUTOMOBILES
CLIMATIC CHANGE
COMPETITION
CONTROL
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
ENERGY CONSERVATION
ENERGY CONSUMPTION
ENERGY POLICY
ENERGY SOURCES
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL CONSUMPTION
FUELS
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
IMPORTS
INDUSTRY
MASS TRANSIT SYSTEMS
NATIONAL SECURITY
NORTH AMERICA
PETROLEUM
PRICES
SECURITY
STANDARDS
TAXES
TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT
TRADE
TRAFFIC CONTROL
TRANSPORTATION SECTOR
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS
USA
VEHICLES