Maps and Data

This chart shows average annual fuel use (per vehicle) of major vehicle categories in the United States. The two factors affecting the average annual fuel use of a vehicle are the average miles per year (correlative) and the fuel economy of the vehicle (inversely correlative). Transit buses, which are relatively inefficient due to their stop-and-go drive cycles and heavy loads, consume more fuel on average than any other vehicle type. Class 8 trucks, which typically travel long distances carrying heavy loads, use the second-most amount of fuel. Refuse trucks, like transit buses, are inefficient due to their heavy loads and stop-and-go drive cycles. The last four vehicle types are owned by individual consumers, and they each use a fraction of the fuel used by fleet-based vehicles, on a per-vehicle basis. See also Average Annual Vehicle Miles Traveled by Major Vehicle Categories and Average Fuel Economy of Major Vehicle Categories.

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