Potential for transit as an energy saving option

Technical Report · Mon Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 1976

OSTI ID:6827130

This study was instigated in response to the growing national concern over the rapidly expanding rate of energy use in the face of possible fuel shortages. It is primarily concerned with the potential impacts and energy efficiencies of short-term policies designed to induce auto drivers to shift to public transit. The energy efficiencies of various urban passenger transportation modes are analyzed, including automobile, bus, rapid rail, commuter rail, and Dial-a-Ride transit. Policies to induce mode shifts to public transit are structured into alternative scenarios for evaluation. Possible urbanized area transportation energy savings as well as reductions in vehicle miles of travel are estimated first for individual representative cities and then expanded to a national level. Representative cost evaluations of policy actions are included as well. Finally, note is made of projected secondary or indirect impacts of policy design and implementation. Four scenarios were constructed for evaluation. Scenario I consists of modest transit enhancements, Scenario II major transit enhancements, Scenario III the same major transit enhancements combined with auto disincentives, and Scenario IV automobile disincentives alone. The analytical procedures used to estimate the travel mode shifts and energy savings that could be achieved with alternative strategies were applied in the context of actual urban conditions. As it was clearly impractical to prepare separate analyses for all urbanized areas, one representative city was chosen from each of four groupings. Collectively, these four groups covered all urbanized areas in the country. The groupings were made on the basis of transit utilization for journey-to-work purposes and the presence or lack of an extensive rail system. Four representative cities chosen for this study were Albuquerque, San Diego, Chicago, and Baltimore.

• Research Organization: Federal Energy Administration, Washington, D.C. (USA). Office of Energy Conservation and Environment
• OSTI ID: 6827130
• Report Number(s): FEA/D-76/224
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
291000 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Conservation
32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
320202* -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Transportation-- Railway
320203 -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Transportation-- Land & Roadway
AUTOMOBILES
BUSES
CALIFORNIA
CENTRAL REGION
CHICAGO
ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
ECONOMICS
EFFICIENCY
ENERGY CONSERVATION
ENERGY EFFICIENCY
EVALUATION
FEASIBILITY STUDIES
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
GREAT LAKES REGION
ILLINOIS
IMPLEMENTATION
MARYLAND
MASS TRANSIT SYSTEMS
NEW MEXICO
NORTH AMERICA
RAPID TRANSIT SYSTEMS
SOUTHWEST REGION
TRAINS
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS
URBAN AREAS
USA
VEHICLES
WESTERN REGION