Energies 2011, 4(4), 563-581; doi:10.3390/en4040563
Article

Transport and Carbon Emissions in the United States: The Long View

Lee Schipper 1,* email, Calanit Saenger 2 email and Anant Sudardshan 3 email
1 Global Metropolitan Studies, University of California, Berkeley / 1950 Addison St., Suite 202, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA 2 Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of California, Berkeley / 207 Giannini Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA 3 Precourt Energy Efficiency Center, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 31 January 2011; in revised form: 23 February 2011 / Accepted: 16 March 2011 / Published: 24 March 2011
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Energy-Friendly Transportation)
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Abstract: The following analysis traces U.S. transport CO2 emissions in combustion by mode for 1960–2008. Changes in emissions are divided into components related to overall population and economic growth, transport mode shift, changes in the ratio of fuel used to passenger or tonne-km of activity, and changes in the CO2 content of fuels. Where data permit we show how changes in vehicle utilization affected CO2 emissions. We comment on factors causing the changes in components of emissions. A Log-Mean Divisia Index and Laspeyres decompositions of the 1960–2008 changes are calculated. From this decomposition we speculate to what extent the factors associated with the increases in CO2 emissions since 1960 would be important in the future, and what other factors could reduce emissions. This thorough decomposition is imperative for the crafting of transport policy that aims to address climate change.
Keywords: U.S. transport; CO2 emissions; fuel intensity

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MDPI and ACS Style

Schipper, L.; Saenger, C.; Sudardshan, A. Transport and Carbon Emissions in the United States: The Long View. Energies 2011, 4, 563-581.

AMA Style

Schipper L, Saenger C, Sudardshan A. Transport and Carbon Emissions in the United States: The Long View. Energies. 2011; 4(4):563-581.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Schipper, Lee; Saenger, Calanit; Sudardshan, Anant. 2011. "Transport and Carbon Emissions in the United States: The Long View." Energies 4, no. 4: 563-581.

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