Gas Hogs

Apr. 21st, 2008 06:38 pm
blueeowyn: (Default)
[personal profile] blueeowyn
Gas prices are really out of control. Last summer the highest we paid was only a little higher than the current prices and prices usually rise in the summer because of demand. As the commercials say a lot of the cost of gas is the cost of the crude oil to make the gas (though the other 30% is a combination of % of sale profit for the company, local owners, shipping, and everyone's favorite taxes of assorted types). Now the % of sale price is a problem (as opposed to the taxes which are $x/gal ... and where the 2.999 comes from).

Why is crude high? Let's see:

  • US Dollar in the toilet
  • Instability in the Middle East
  • Increased demand from other areas (China and India are often cited but they aren't the only ones
  • Limited production by OPEC (probably to keep the price up, give themselves power, increase the lack of stability, and probably a host of other reasons)
  • Decreased production elsewhere (damage from storms; the replacement of the Alaskan pipeline; etc.)
  • Increased demand in the US


Most of these things are beyond the control of your average person. However, the demand in the U.S. can be affected by people. How much extra gas is burned every year by the vehicles that are not particularly fuel efficient? I did some quick calculations and it is pretty staggering. I assumed 2000 miles/year/car. This is probably low for the area where I live (DC). I am assuming 400,000 cars in the DC area (probably a severe underestimation but it is based on the number of people in DC, the % that commute out of DC; the number of workers in DC, the % that commute in as solo drivers, and the % that commute in as carpools (assuming 2.5 people/car).

DC is 1 City; take the millions of Gallons for DC and multiply it by say 30 to cover the cities that are larger than DC (http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0763098.html)

MPGGal/
Year/
Car
Cost
($3.50/gal)
DC Gal/
Year
15133$46753 million
20100$35040 million
25 80$28032 million
3067$23327 million
3557$20023 million
4050$17520 million
4544$15618 million
5040$14016 million


So, let's say the average person drives a 25 mpg SUV. That works out to 960 million gallons of gas annually for these cities. If each changed to a 30 mpg car, they would save 160 MILLION gallons of gas PER YEAR.

If we look at 3000 miles/year and 600000 cars; the difference between 25 mpg and 30 mpg becomes 1260 MILLION gallons (2160 if you go to 35mpg).
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