Eco-Driving — Unfeel the Need for Speed
by Warren McLaren, Sydney on 10.11.05
The Netherlands Ministry of Spatial Planning, Housing and the Environment, who thankfully also go by the shorter name of ‘VROM’, publish a periodical newsletter. This time round they are highlighting Air Quality and in one story how this can be addressed via automotive transport and in particular the speed thereof. The VROM believe "a decrease in the general speed limit to 100 km/hr [from 120km/hr] would create a one mega-tonne reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions per year". Rather than repackage their message on how to achieve this, we reckon it's succinct enough to give it you unedited: “Eco-Driving is a driving style designed to reduce fuel consumption, cut emissions and improve safety. By changing the way they drive, motorists can save up to 25% on fuel and fuel costs. In the original 15 European Union member states, a 10% decrease in consumption translates into 25 billion litres of fuel and 50 mega-tonnes carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.”
“The Dutch government backs the principles of Eco-Driving and for the first time will begin promoting it under the slogan “50 in 4th gear” on all 80 km/hr zones in November 2005. In the Netherlands, the Eco-Driving programme is funded from the Climate Change budget, and all major consumer and business transport organisations are involved. The goal of the programme is to change motorist driving habits: steady driving patterns provide the optimal fuel and environmental benefits. Like any new skill, it takes practice.
Some of the key principles of Eco-Driving are:
• Maintain engine speeds between 1200 – 3000 rotations per minute (RPM);
• Change to higher gears between 2000 – 2500 RPM, and drive in top gears at lower speeds – the so-called “50 in 4th gear” driving style;
• Try to anticipate more to avoid strong accelerations, decelerations, overtaking or aggressive driving;
• Driving at speed limits and avoiding high speeds;
• Add 10% to standard tyre pressure;
• Avoid using the air condition, or set at temperatures above 21°C;
• Use your bike for short trips – starting your car when it is ‘cold’ uses 300% more fuel.”
Of course, we’re big fans of that last point. For more background on 'Speed Rationing' and the like, point your cursor here. Other related Air Quality stories can also be found at ::VROM’s ‘Shared Spaces’ newsletter
Clearly, driving slow is more efficient from a fuel perspective, and as such better for air quality. This concept will be interesting to follow, however, because, as with many conceived environmental programs, it is confounded by the "free rider" problem: the benefits of the program are good only in the collective, and benefits are not lost to individual transgressors.
In this case, driving slower only helps if others do so as well; if they don't and you do not only do you have poor air quality, but you spend more time in it because you're going slower -- an incentive to speed up. Further, if everyone else drives slow, invariably someone will speed up because they already have better air because of others' actions, and their "sole" transgression won't hurt the result -- again, an incentive to speed up.
I also wonder how effective such a program would be in the US because of our sheer size. 50km in the Netherlands is getting somewhere; 50km from New York to, say, Pittsburgh, PA is an eternity!
50km = 50km. the Netherlands has LOADS of traffic congestion. The dutch are good at participating in a collective approach.
Scott:"Spend more time in bad air when driving slower"?
Just like driving faster in LA gets you out of the smog faster? Oh wait, the smog is still there when you get out of your car, damn.
Scott:"free rider problem"?
Usually refered to as "tragedy of the commons".
Scott: "I also wonder how effective such a program would be in the US because of our sheer size. 50km in the Netherlands is getting somewhere; 50km from New York to, say, Pittsburgh, PA is an eternity!"
Yes, so how long does it take to drive that course at 35mph?
It is a slogan to get people to drive more effectively and 50km/h is the typcial city speed limit in Europe. Highway speed limit in the netherlands is 120km/h (though there are those parts of the system where it has been decreased to 80).
BTW, there are very many smaller countries where the maximum speed limits on highways are well above the ones in the US (e.g. Germany).
Interesting to note, those 80km/h motorways have automated enforcement (radar traps, presumably) - I hope that is going to be adopted europe-wide.
Oh, never mind. "Free rider problem" is an actual term.
I did an experiment once. I commute about 40 miles each way. (I know, I know. I'm sorry already.) I saw a huge tractor trailer blow by me spewing black smoke at at least 75mph as I got on the highway in the town I work in. I proceeded to set my cruise control for 60 mph.
A little under an hour later, I was nearing my exit by my home. Lo and behold, I was right behind the truck that sped and polluted the whole way there. That proved to me that speeding home doesn't save me any time because there's always traffic to contend with.
I found this piece very interesting. Many of those tips are the same as the ones I've been giving to all who would listen on how to improve their fuel economy since gas prices rose.
As a Toyota Prius owner, I enjoy the benefit of instrumentation that provides detailed feedback allowing me to tweak my driving style to maximize fuel economy. A group of us decided this past summer to see just how far we could go on a single tank of gas in a Prius using all the fuel saving techniques we could muster, and averaged 110 mpg over 1397 miles on a back-and-forth route near Pittsburgh. Among other things, we kept our speeds below 41 mph throughout and made frequent use of the prius feature of shutting off the gas engine when not needed for propulsion.
We make no claims that our driving style was in any way 'normal', but many other prius drivers have been able to increase their mpg by 10 mpg or more by applying the more practical of our techniques in their daily commutes. The easiest of these is to simply slow down.
In a Prius, you lose nearly 1 mpg for every mph you exceed 50. Simply setting the cruise control for a little LESS than the speed limit makes a huge difference.
As the price of gas continues to climb more and more people will incorporate more efficient driving choices into their lifestyles, benefitting their bank accounts as well as the environment. I'm pleased to see the Netherlands take this wise leadership role.
I find it interesting that they quote filling your tires 10% beyond recommended. Tire manufacturers and personal experience say that over inflating tires, even by such a small margin, causes them to wear out much faster. What is the point in saving 4% in fuel when you burn all the oil and manufacturing to make tires 10-30% faster.
I also have to say if they really want their drivers to save 4% in fuel immediately they need to ban automatic transmissions in their country. I haven't had the opportunity to compare the new CVT's but all normal automatic transmissions steal 3-15% of your fuel economy. I drive a corolla it gets the manufacturers listed fuel economy 38MPG highway (With a standard). The same car with an auto gets 33MPG highway.
I drive a 750cc motorcycle. I have experimented on my own and have come up with essentially the same recommendations as this article states with the exception of tire pressure. I have found that tire pressure has no noticeable difference in my gas mileage. Before I stated playing around with fuel economy, I got 50 MPG. These days I regularly get 66MPG. For some reason, this summer when it was really hot I was getting 72MPG. I'm not sure of the cause but I am guessing that it is either because I was driving through less dense air so didn't have all of the air resistance or else it was because the gasoline that I was buying was a special mix that they make when it gets hot.
To echo "Virtualgathis" thoughts re problems with over inflating tires - in foul weather conditions it will impair car control, a fatal accident recently happened near me and this was determined to be the cause. Otherwise, take your time, enjoy the drive, life is tastier at slow speeds :)
As a hypermiler myself, I think it's great that this style of driving is becoming more popular as gas prices and our environmental awareness increases. I get 70% better gas mileage just by changing my driving style, and although it takes me longer to get some places, I enjoy it more. I leave more time to get places, and I never feel like I am in a rush. I went from 23mpg in a Subaru Legacy to 40mpg.
It makes me wonder why people speed. Going slow is safer, more efficient on gas, extends the life of brakes, allows for more time for conversations or radio shows, and reduces my impact on the environment I'm never in a rush to get anywhere, and I always take routes that avoid traffic where possible. Speeding only costs more financially and environmentally, makes people angry and generally doesn't get you to the destination much faster.
As a hypermiler myself, I think it's great that this style of driving is becoming more popular as gas prices and our environmental awareness increases. I get 70% better gas mileage just by changing my driving style, and although it takes me longer to get some places, I enjoy it more. I leave more time to get places, and I never feel like I am in a rush. I went from 23mpg in a Subaru Legacy to 40mpg.
It makes me wonder why people speed. Going slow is safer, more efficient on gas, extends the life of brakes, allows for more time for conversations or radio shows, and reduces my impact on the environment I'm never in a rush to get anywhere, and I always take routes that avoid traffic where possible. Speeding only costs more financially and environmentally, makes people angry and generally doesn't get you to the destination much faster.
I have observed an interesting environmental reporting characteristic: incentives for changing policy or behavior are usually stated in terms of *collective* benefits, even when there are equally compelling *individual* benefits from similar actions. In this case, a reduction in normative speeds also saves money, makes roadways safer, and encourages long-term land-use changes that ultimately make it cheaper and more convenient to switch to other travel modes.
The Mobility Education Foundation (www.mobilityeducation.org) is an American non-profit organization using this multi-pronged approach to recraft drivers education. There are many irrationalities in our current system, including the myth that a driver going 10% faster on the freeway will arrive 10% sooner than others.
I think many of us prefer to cling to the fantasy that we're traveling at our "peak speed" rather than at our "average speed". That fantasy is costing way more than environmental damage in our country and in other parts of the world.