Legislative Options to Improve Transportation Efficiency

The report outlines legislative strategies for U.S. states to increase vehicle efficiency, categorizing them into short-term options—such as HOV lane access for Alternative Fuel Vehicles (AFVs) and Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs), state procurement mandates, and tire labeling—and long-term options, including tax incentives, 'pay-at-the-pump' insurance, and feebate programs. It argues that state action is necessary due to the economic burden of high oil prices, security risks associated with oil dependence, and environmental impacts like carbon dioxide emissions.

• State governments can achieve significant cost savings by mandating the procurement of efficient vehicles, as the net present value of fuel savings over a 14-year lifetime (~$8,200) outweighs the incremental cost of advanced efficiency vehicles (~$3,200), resulting in a saving of approximately $5,000 per vehicle.
• Expanding High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane access to include AFVs and HEVs regardless of occupancy is identified as the most basic change states can make to improve efficiency, though some states face federal restrictions on allowing solo drivers in these lanes.
• The report proposes 'Pay-at-the-Pump' (PATP) insurance, where basic third-party liability insurance is collected via the state fuel-tax system. This is estimated to reduce the average annual fixed cost per car by approximately $250 (in 2003 dollars) and could reduce light-vehicle fuel consumption in California by 4% by 2020.
• Feebates are recommended as a revenue-neutral mechanism that provides rebates for vehicles exceeding a fuel economy 'pivot point' and surcharges for those below it. The report suggests using a gallons per mile (gpm) standard rather than miles per gallon (mpg) to ensure linear proportionality in fuel savings.
• To address the decline of federal tax credits for AFVs and HEVs (which dropped from $2,000 to $500 in 2006 and were set to disappear by 2007), the report suggests states implement their own income tax credits, such as a $1,000 credit through 2009.

APA

Datta, E. K., & Mims, N. (2005). Legislative Options to Improve Transportation Efficiency. RMI. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_T05-03_LegislativeOptions.pdf

Chicago

Datta, E. Kyle, and Natalie Mims. Legislative Options to Improve Transportation Efficiency. RMI, 2005. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_T05-03_LegislativeOptions.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Datta |first1=E. Kyle |last2=Mims |first2=Natalie |title=Legislative Options to Improve Transportation Efficiency |publisher=RMI |date=April 2005 |url=https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_T05-03_LegislativeOptions.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{datta2005legislative, author = {Datta, E. Kyle and Mims, Natalie}, title = {{Legislative Options to Improve Transportation Efficiency}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2005}, month = apr, url = {https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_T05-03_LegislativeOptions.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }