Maps and Data

This chart shows average per-passenger fuel economy of various modes of travel. All forms of rail achieve relatively high values because of high ridership, proportionally low drag, and high electrification rates (electricity is inherently more efficient than combustion-engine propulsion). Airlines are an increasingly efficient form of transport as more passengers are fit onto planes and ticketing software fills most planes to capacity. Motorcycles achieve a high number of passenger miles per gallon, owing to their light weight and very high fuel efficiency. Transit buses are not very efficient at their current ridership rates, which have declined since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Demand response vehicles are the least efficient because they need to use fuel just to get to the passenger.

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