Transportation News

US PIRG Report Shows Big Savings of Energy, Time, Money, and CO2

The Dulles Metrorail extension received a boost today as the US Public Interest Research Group was joined by Mayor Adrian Fenty and other supporters to release a major new report on oil savings and other benefits from public transportation in the DC area and around the country. A Better Way to Go: Meeting America’s 21st Century Transportation Challenges with Modern Public Transit examines the challenges faced by America’s transportation system and the benefits of existing rail and bus projects in the DC area and other regions.

According to the report, in 2006 the DC metro saved close to 240 million gallons of oil that would have otherwise been used for transportation in the DC area, making it the second most energy efficient public transportation system in the country.  Riders in the district saved about a gallon of oil every time they rode the metro. 

Riding the metro is also one of the simplest ways that individuals can make an impact on global warming.  In 2006, transit trips in DC saved over a half a million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. 

“A Better Way to Go proves what we already knew here in the District of Columbia. An excellent public transportation system is essential to our success,” said DC Mayor Adrian Fenty. “Our public transportation system attracts economic development, saves taxpayer money and protects the health and environment of the City.”   

While gas prices spike and experts predict gas prices to reach $4/gallon this summer, DC metro saved residents $625 million that would have otherwise been spent at the pumps, according to the report.    

“Americans are spending more money at the pumps, more time stuck in traffic, and more resources looking for solutions to our addiction to oil” said US PIRG staff attorney John Krieger. “This report data shows that our country needs federal investment in popular projects like the Dulles Extension in order to meet our country’s long-term transportation needs.”

The proposed 23.5-mile Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project would serve as a link between Metro’s existing 106-mile Metrorail system and service through Tysons Corner to Washington Dulles International Airport and Loudoun County, serving one of the district’s fastest growing and most congested corridors.

Public opinion polls show that 53 percent of commuters would prefer to use more public transportation if it were available near their home and workplace. An overwhelming majority of the public, 75 percent, tell pollsters that transit is the best way to fight traffic congestion.

“This report reinforces my belief that federal investment in public transportation should be a national priority, said Senator Benjamin Cardin (D-MD). “Our nation receives extraordinary public benefit from mass transportation systems,” said Senator Cardin.  “They take thousands of cars off our congested highways. They take tons of pollutants out of the air we breathe.They move people efficiently into and out of our most important commercial centers.” 

Nationally, transit saves 3.4 billion gallons of oil each year, prevents 541 million hours of traffic delay and reduces global warming pollution by 26 million tons. Demand for public transportation is booming nationally, with transit trips far outpacing the growth of auto miles or population since 1995.

Read the report here.