Energy efficiency and consumption — the rebound effect — a survey

Gasoline consumption per capita in ten large US cities is found to vary by up to 40 per cent, due primarily to land use and transport planning factors, rather than price or income variations. The same patterns, though more extreme, are seen in a global sample of thirty two cities where average gasoline consumption in US cities was nearly twice as much as in Australian cities, four times higher than european cities and ten times as much as asian cities. Allowing for gasoline price, income and vehicle efficiency explains only half of these differences. Physical planning and transport planning policies are suggested for reducing gasoline consumption (a).

Gasoline consumption and cities - a comparison of u.s. cities with a global survey and some implications

Gasoline consumption per capita in ten large United States cities varies by up to 40 percent, primarily because of land use and transportation planning factors, rather than price or income variations. The same patterns, though more extreme, appear in a global sample of 32 cities. Here, average gasoline consumption in U.S. cities was nearly twice as high as in Australian cities, four times higher than in European cities and ten times higher than in Asian cities. Allowing for variations in gasoline price, income, and vehicle efficiency explains only half of these differences. We suggest physical planning policies, particularly reurbanization and a reorientation of transportation priorities as a means of reducing gasoline consumption and automobile dependence.

Gasoline Consumption and Cities: A Comparison of U.S. Cities with a Global Survey

Elasticities of Road Traffic and Fuel Consumption with Respect to Price and Income: A Review

A survey is made of the international research on the response of motorists to fuel price changes and an assessment of the orders of magnitude of the relevant income and price effects. The paper highlights some new results and directions that have appeared in the literature. The evidence shows important differences between the long- and short-run price elasticities of fuel consumption.

The Demand for Automobile Fuel A Survey of Elasticities

A short-run analysis of consumer demand for gasoline for nonbusiness automobile use estimates demand on the basis of a Consumer Expenditure Survey (CES) made by the Bureau of Labor Statistics during 1972-1973. The use of pooled time-series/cross-section data permits the examination of effects of location, family characteristics, and household automobile stock as well as prices and household income. The results show that gasoline price increases will constrain demand, with price elasticity of -0.43 for both one-car and multi-car households. 8 references, 2 tables. (DCK)

Analysis of the short-run consumer demand for gasoline using household survey data

The authors specify and estimate a model of the short-run demand for gasoline which allows them to decompose a consumer's gasoline demand elasticities into miles-driven and driving-efficiency components. Their model is estimated using detailed household survey data which allows direct focus on the short run, holding both the household's automobile stock and demographic profile fixed. Among the most interesting results are: (1) The data allow interesting insights to be drawn into the interrelationship between these important variables and household behavior with respect to gasoline consumption, miles driven, and driving efficiency. (2) The gasoline demand behavior of one-car and multi-car households differ significantly from each other. Evaluated at overall sample means, one-car households have higher (in absolute value) price elasticites for gasoline, miles driven and fuel-efficiency demand. Conversely, multi-car households have higher (in absolute value) total expenditure elasticities for each category. (3) For both one-car and multi-car households, roughly 75% of the estimated price elasticity and roughly 80% of the estimated total-expenditure elasticity of gasoline demand stem from the miles-driven component. The estimated fuel-efficiency elasticities, though smaller than their standard errors, indicate that households respond to changes in prices and total-expenditure levels not only by changing the number of miles theymore » drive, but also by changing the efficiency with which they drive them. 23 references, 3 tables.« less

Robert Gillingham

Papers

Analysis of the short-run consumer demand for gasoline using household survey data

A decomposition of the price and income elasticity of the consumer demand for gasoline