A recent economic downturn, the relatively high price of gasoline, and an increase in fuel efficiency of vehicles have led to a slight decline in oil consumption in the United States

Question

However, per capita oil use is still among the highest in the world—eight times higher than per capita oil use in China and almost 20 times higher than per capita use in India. Identify specific ways that the United States could further decrease its oil consumption and become more sustainable.

Answer 1

Currently, most of the vehicles in the United States use traditional internal-combustion engines that burn gasoline (derived from oil). An increase in the availability and use of hybrid cars would increase the overall fuel efficiency of cars on the road, thus decreasing the use of gasoline. Likewise, if electric cars were cheaper and more readily available, and if more fueling stations had the capacity to recharge electric cars, such cars would be more popular. These cars do not burn gasoline at all, and the electricity used for charging the electric cars usually comes from coal, natural gas, nuclear, hydropower, or wind, not oil. Along with the high price of gas motivating people to drive less, if the United States were to raise the gas tax, gasoline would become more expensive, further motivating people to drive less or switch to a hybrid or electric vehicle. Doing so might also motivate people to carpool or use buses and other mass transit options to get to and from work and school. The United States recently raised the mileage standards for new passenger vehicles to 54.5 mpg by the year 2025, which will require innovation into advanced technologies. If achieved, the new regulations would almost double the current fuel efficiency standards and would save millions of barrels of oil every day.