Motor vehicles and greenhouse gas emissions
Motor vehicles play a significant role in global greenhouse gas emissions, particularly in industrialized and rapidly developing countries. They account for about one-third of the world's oil consumption and are major sources of nitrous oxide emissions, which contribute to ozone formation and climate change. The growth in automobile ownership is especially pronounced in countries like India and China, where vehicle sales have surged alongside urban development. As cities evolve, many have been redesigned to cater to car travel, resulting in sprawling suburban areas with limited public transport options.
Efforts to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions have led urban planners to rethink transportation strategies, with some cities implementing congestion charges to discourage car use. For example, London and Stockholm have successfully reduced vehicle traffic and carbon dioxide emissions through these measures, while also promoting public transport and cycling. Despite these initiatives, the increasing demand for automobiles in developing nations poses challenges to global oil consumption and environmental sustainability. If vehicle usage in countries like India and China were to reach levels similar to those in the United States, the implications for oil demand and greenhouse gas emissions could be profound.
Motor vehicles and greenhouse gas emissions
Passenger vehicles in the United States by 2007 accounted for 40 percent of the country’s oil consumption and 10 percent of the world’s consumption. Cars and trucks used in the United States burned 15 percent of the world’s annual oil production.
Background
Motor vehicles consume one-third of the world’s oil production. The number of automobiles has been increasing more quickly than population, especially in countries that have just begun to experience widespread industrial development, such as India and China. The tailpipes of motorized vehicles also emit 47 percent of North America’s nitrous oxide, a primary component of ozone in the lower atmosphere that also retains heat as a greenhouse gas (GHG).
U.S. Cities
Cities in the United States and elsewhere have been remade to accommodate automobiles. The U.S. cities that reached maturity after the 1930’s—the last decade in which the average person did not own a car—have become energy-intensive, sprawling regions of suburbs and freeways, in which most residents are required to use automobiles for transportation. Outside of a few major eastern cities (New York and Boston being prominent examples), the automobile has become an everyday necessity for nearly everyone in the United States. After the year 2000, urban planners began to deemphasize the automobile in order to reduce GHG emissions. Even General Motors (GM) during 2007 entered a partnership to develop residences in once-abandoned buildings along the Detroit waterfront. One of the selling points for these lofts was the fact that people who live in them will be able to walk to work at GM’s headquarters.
In New York City, Mayor Michael Bloomberg proposed a congestion charge for the crowded southern half of Manhattan Island, roughly from 86th Street southward. Under Bloomberg’s plan, on weekdays between 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., trucks would be charged $21 per day and cars would be charged $8 per day to drive in the city. This tax would be in addition to the premium parking fees charged by city-owned and private lots. In 2008, only 5 percent of the people who worked on Manhattan Island and lived outside the island commuted by car. According to Bloomberg’s proposal, drivers traveling only within the congestion zone would pay half price; taxis and livery cabs would be exempt, with uncontrolled, free access to the area.
Studies have shown that vehicle speeds on southern Manhattan Island average from 4 to 6 kilometers per hour. Many times, walking is almost as fast as driving. Subways are generally much faster means of transportation in the city. The value of the time lost to congestion delays in New York City has been estimated at $5 billion per year. When the cost is adjusted to include wasted fuel, lost revenue, and increasing costs of doing business, the total rises to $13 billion per year. Bloomberg’s plan was defeated by the New York State Assembly in July of 2007.
Existing Congestion Charges
Singapore was the first city to introduce a congestion charge. London introduced such a charge in 2003, followed by Milan, Italy. In London, vehicle speeds have since risen by 37 percent and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions have fallen by 15 percent. London’s mayor, Ken Livingstone, a major proponent of the charge, was easily reelected in 2004, and in 2006 two-thirds of London residents supported the charge. During January, 2007, London’s congestion zone was expanded westward to include most of Kensington, Chelsea, and Westminster. By early 2007, London’s congestion charge had reduced private automobile use 38 percent and CO2 emissions 20 percent in the congestion charge zone.
London also improved its public transport system to offer its residents easier alternatives; many commuters had complained that the buses were slow and expensive. By the time the London bus fleet was upgraded, more than six million people used it daily. The number of people commuting by bicycle in London soared by 80 percent after the congestion charge was implemented.
In the meantime, BP proposed that every motorist in Great Britain sign up for a plan called Target Neutral. Drivers can fund ventures that offset the amount of CO2 that their driving adds to the atmosphere. Drivers register at a Target Neutral Web site, which calculates the estimated amount of CO2 that may be produced by their driving over the coming year. Drivers then pay offsets based on the estimate. The typical family car, traveling 16,100 kilometers per year, is likely to cost about œ20 ($39) to offset.
Stockholm
Congestion charging in downtown Stockholm was a controversial issue in the Swedish general election during the late summer of 2006. A congestion charge of up to $7 per day was narrowly approved by 52 percent in a referendum September 17, 2006. The Stockholm congestion charge reduced auto traffic by 20 to 25 percent, while the use of trains, buses, and Stockholm’s subway system increased. Emissions of CO2 declined 10 to 14 percent in the inner city and 2 to 3 percent in Stockholm County. The project also increased the use of environmentally friendly cars (such as hybrids), which are exempt from congestion taxes. As in London, commuting by bicycle also increased. Following a trial period, the Stockholm congestion tax became permanent during August of 2007.
Context
While some cities restrict automobile use, developing countries’ fleets are increasing quickly. In China, by 2008, there were 20 personal vehicles per 1,000 people of driving age; in India, there were 18 per 1,000. In the United States, the same figure stood at 1,148 per 1,000. Between 2000 and 2006, sales of heavy trucks in China increased 800 percent. Sales of passenger cars increased 600 percent. Sales of new passenger vehicles in India tripled (from 500,000 per year to 1.5 million) between 1998 and 2008, a period during which the country built its first interstate highway system, the Golden Quadrilateral, which links Mumbai (Bombay), Delhi, Kolkata (Calcutta), and Bangalore.
If people in India and China drove at half the rate of those in the United States, world oil consumption, 86 million barrels per day in 2006, would balloon to more than 200 million. If drivers in India and China used cars as Americans do, world oil consumption would more than triple, with attendant impacts on its price, as well as GHG emissions.
Key Concepts
congestion charge: a tax levied for driving in the urban core of a large cityGolden Quadrilateral: India’s first superhighway system, linking the country’s east and west coasts with Delhimiles per gallon (MPGs): a fuel efficiency standard for motor vehicles, measuring the average distance traveled on one gallon of fuelTarget Neutral: a carbon-offset plan for drivers in Great Britain
Bibliography
Brown, Lester R. Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization. 3d ed. New York: W. W. Norton, 2008. Provides a detailed analysis of motor vehicles’ role in global warming.
Cline, William R. The Economics of Global Warming. Washington, D.C.: Institute for International Economics, 1992. An early attempt to sketch the costs and benefits of global warming, including the role of motorized transportation.
Steinman, David. Safe Trip to Eden: Ten Steps to Save Planet Earth from Global Warming Meltdown. New York: Thunder’s Mouth Press, 2007. A solutions-oriented work that includes alternatives to motor vehicles.