The effect of residential location on vehicle miles of travel, energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions: Chicago case study

A Chicago-based case study explores the relationship between residential location on household patterns of vehicle miles of travel, and by extension, energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Generally, vehicle miles, energy use and greenhouse gas emissions increase with residential distance from the city center, and thus, with decreasing residential density. Travel alone, however, does not account for the energy/greenhouse gas emissions profiles in the region's fringe where the use of low-efficiency vehicles dominates. Higher fringe energy values are a function of both increased vehicle miles of traveled and low-efficiency vehicle use. Various scenario show that with increases in privately vehicle fuel efficiency, the overall reduction in fuel use creates a more uniform spatial profile of energy/greenhouse gas emissions across the region. The most significant example is a scenario involving the shift of the survey fleet to 2012 European fuel economy standards resulting in an energy/greenhouse gas emissions reduction of 48%. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.