As the leaves fall this autumn, advocates for energy efficiency hope your fuel consumption will, too. This October marks the 25th annual observance of National Energy Awareness Month, declared by President George H.W. Bush in 1991 to educate the public on the importance of sustainable management of the nation's energy resources. As drivers and passengers of cars and trucks, Americans in every state have an impact on energy consumption — some more than others.
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To get us all thinking about our own energy consumption this month, financial information website WalletHub.com studied the use rates in the Lower 48 states, and ranked them according to their relative efficiency. The study focused on two main areas, household energy use and vehicle fuel consumption, and combined the scores for an overall ranking. For our car-centric concerns here, we'll just focus on the fuel-economy side of things with states' Car-Energy Efficiency Rank.
The most fuel-efficient states, which WalletHub researchers determined by dividing the annual number of miles driven by the number of gallons of gas consumed, are as follows:
1. Florida
2. North Carolina
3. Alabama
4. New York
5. California
6. Delaware
7. Vermont
8. Wisconsin
9. Indiana
10. Rhode Island
11. Connecticut
12. Arizona
13. Georgia
14. Mississippi
15. Minnesota
16. West Virginia
17. Tennessee
18. Ohio
19. Oklahoma
20. Nevada
21. Massachusetts
22. Colorado
23. Missouri
24. New Mexico
The least fuel-efficient states are:
1. North Dakota
2. Wyoming
3. Iowa
4. South Dakota
5. Texas
6. South Carolina
7. Maine
8. Nebraska
9. Pennsylvania
10. Montana
11. New Jersey
12. Louisiana
13. New Hampshire
14. Kentucky
15. Virginia
16. Idaho
17. Arkansas
18. Oregon
19. Washington
20. Kansas
21. Illinois
22. Maryland
23. Utah
24. Michigan
Pointing to a report from global management consulting firm McKinsey & Co., WalletHub noted that a $520 billion investment in energy-efficiency measures "could save the economy more than $1.2 trillion in the future and potentially reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions by 1.1 gigatons — 'the equivalent of taking the entire U.S. fleet of passenger vehicles and light trucks off the roads.' "
On an individual, day-to-day level, we can take personal measures to reduce our own fuel consumption. The U.S. Department of Energy offers the following tips motorists can implement immediately, at no cost, to drive more efficiently:
- Avoid aggressive driving. Refraining from rapid acceleration and braking, as well as speeding, can improve your mileage by as much as 33 percent.
- Observe the speed limit. Every 5 mph you drive in excess of 50 mph is like paying an additional 16 cents a gallon for gas.
- Avoid hauling cargo on the roof. A large, blunt rooftop cargo box can reduce fuel economy by as much as 25 percent.
- Remove excess weight. Every 100 pounds in your vehicle reduces fuel economy by an additional 1 percent.
- Avoid excessive idling. This can waste as much as half a gallon of fuel per hour.
- Use cruise control. Maintaining a consistent speed in most cases saves gas.
from Cars.com News http://ift.tt/1LLpJH8
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