Strategies to Conserve Fuel
More than 250 million vehicles consume millions of barrels of petroleum every day in the United States. On-road passenger travel alone accounts for more than 2.5 trillion vehicle miles traveled each year. Vehicle fleet managers and drivers, corporate decision makers, and public transportation planners can use these strategies to conserve fuel.![Idle Reduction]()
Idle Reduction
Find ways to reduce petroleum consumption and greenhouse emissions by idling less.
Idle ReductionIdle Reduction
Idling Facts
- Medium-duty trucks use about 2.5 billion gallons of fuel to idle each year, or 6.7% of the total fuel they consume.
- More than 650,000 long-haul heavy-duty trucks idle overnight for required rest stops at least some fraction of the time, using more than 685 million gallons of fuel per year.
Drivers idle for a variety of reasons, such as to keep vehicles warm, operate radios, or power equipment. Each year, U.S. passenger cars, light trucks, medium-duty trucks, and heavy-duty vehicles consume more than 6 billion gallons of diesel fuel and gasoline—without even moving. Roughly half of that fuel is wasted by passenger vehicles.
Idling can be reduced without compromising driver comfort or vehicle equipment operations
Driving Behavior 
Parts and Equipment 
Fleet Rightsizing 
Vehicle Maintenance 
Transportation System Efficiency