Transportation contributes more than 25 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions, and personal vehicles account for 14 percent of U.S. energy use.
And though we’re not suggesting you get rid of your ride, the automobile and how we use it is certainly a critical part of our sustainability challenge.

• Optimize Fuel Efficiency

The appetite for more energy to move us from place to place is growing around the world. While a challenge to change our habits, we all need to discipline ourselves to become more efficient in our use of energy resources related to transportation. The potential for improvement is great. - Drive More Efficiently - Aggressive driving behavior such as speeding, rapid acceleration, and excessive braking wastes gas.  It can lower your gas mileage by as much as 33 percent. Gas mileage usually decreases rapidly at speeds above 60 miles per hour (96 kilometers per hour). For example, driving at 70mph (112 km/h) rather than 55 mph (90 km/h) increases fuel consumption by about 20 percent. Use of cruise control and avoiding an idling engine will help improve your mileage. Cars with larger engines typically waste more gas at idle than do cars with smaller engines.

In fact…

Idling is not an effective way to warm up your vehicle, even in cold weather. The best way to do this is to drive the vehicle. With today’s modern engines, you need no more than 30 seconds of idling on winter days before starting to drive. - Keeping your engine properly tuned, checking and replacing your air filters regularly, keeping your tires properly inflated, and using the recommended grade of motor oil for your vehicle will improve your miles per gallon (mpg).  A clogged air filter can decrease your mpg by as much as 10 percent. That is like having to pay an extra 10 percent when you fill up. Pick the most fuel-efficient vehicle in a particular class when making a new car purchase. Or, to take it a step further, choose a smaller class. Next time you are in the market for a car, consider ‘how much car’ you really need.

In fact…

Consumers can save $300 to $500 in fuel costs each year. This can add up to thousands of dollars over a vehicle’s lifetime.

- Choosing a vehicle that is more efficient by an average of 8 mpg improvement translates into reduced GHG emissions of about 2 tons / year. By moving to a smaller class of car, you can potentially save 6 miles per gallon or more, and that difference will add up over the years.

• Drive Fewer Miles

Trading in your car for one with 20 percent or even 50 percent greater fuel efficiency may not be the best step toward more sustainable living. Chances are your old car will still be on the road, and your demand for a new car fuels the need to manufacture more cars. The first step to reducing your transportation footprint should be to use the car you have more responsibly, including things like regular maintenance, but also planning for ways to use your car less. Driving less means less energy used, and the reduced wear and tear should mean a longer life for your car. Combining errands into one trip can save time and money - making you and your car more efficient. Several short trips taken from a cold start can use twice as much fuel as a longer multipurpose trip covering the same distance when the engine is warm. Planning your trip ahead of time can help ensure efficient use of your engine.

• car pooling

You can cut your weekly fuel costs in half and save wear on your car if you car-pool or share rides. Of course, if the financial savings alone aren’t enough, many urban areas allow vehicles with multiple passengers to use special High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes, which are almost always the faster way to get where you’re going. And, in case you need another reason to start car-pooling, it gives you the opportunity to develop friendships that can change the quality of your life (while you save energy). Make a commitment today to car-pooling. Many of us are on the road more miles or kilometers than we realize. Over the course of a year, you can make several choices that significantly change your transportation footprint. Do a quick calculation of your annual distance traveled and consider these alternatives: In metropolitan areas, consider increasing your use of mass transit. Do you do a lot of recreational and vacation travel? The more you do, the larger your transportation footprint. Consider cutting back. While working virtually may not apply in your life, some are able to address responsibilities from home, increasingly relying on information technology tools. Ride a bike or walk instead. The exercise will do you good and you’ll feel better knowing you did something to help make the earth better. For every 1,000 km (621 miles) you avoid driving, you can potentially save 2 or 3 tanks of gas.