On Sunday, I reported that the Ride for Climate bike tour is raising awareness of steps that individuals can take to reduce carbon emissions now. Among the steps being suggested were increasing the use of bicycles for transportation as well as the use of Energy Star rated appliances. Given that bicycles are humanity's most efficient form of land transportation, I was wondering why bikes are not included in the Energy Star program.

Energy Star is a labeling program that was introduced in 1992 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging use of energy-efficient products. Although there are Energy Star ratings for products from dish washers to roofing materials, there is no category for transportation. Considering that transportation vehicles are among the greatest producers of greenhouse gases and other forms of pollution, it's disappointing that vehicles are left out of the Energy Star program and here's why.

The EPA rates motor vehicles for miles per gallon but a mpg rating is only part of the story. What about the energy consumed to create motor vehicles, the huge caloric consumption motor vehicles require, the heat & chemical pollution generated by burning all those calories and the poisoning of food stuffs and ground water caused by the chemical pollutant that motor vehicles generate (both while the vehicles are in use and after the life cycle when the vehicles are discarded and in a landfill somewhere)?

Studies by various researchers have proven that there are many reasons to encourage bicycle usage. Just look at the following examples.

Dr. Marcia Lowe's figures of energy consumed per passenger mile (as published in "The Bicycle: Vehicle for a Small Planet" (Worldwatch Institute, 1989)

Calories Burned Per Mile Of Travel:
Automobile (1 occupant) - 1,860
Transit Bus - 920
Transit Rail - 885
Walking - 100
Bicycling - 35

DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) Study Comparing the efficiency of various modes of transportation for the US Department of Defense:

Transportation Efficiency Comparisons
Means of Transportation	Load Capacity	Daily Range	Speed	Daily Fuel Requirements
Walking	50 pounds	25 miles	@ 3 MPH	3 lbs. MRE for rider 24 lbs. H2O for rider
Bicycling	50 pounds	75 miles	@ 10 MPH	3 lbs. MRE for rider 24 lbs. H2O for rider
Horseback	100 pounds	100 miles	@ 15 MPH	40 lbs. Hay 150lbs. H2o 3 lbs. MRE for rider 24 lbs. H2O for rider
Motorcycle	100 pounds	300 miles	@ 40 MPH	55 lbs. Gas ? oil + pumping/storage Equipment 3 lbs. MRE for rider 25 lbs. H2O for rider
5-Ton Truck	10,000 pounds	300 miles	@ 40 MPH	710 lbs. Dsl. ? oil + pumping/storage Equipment 3 lbs. MRE for rider 25 lbs. H2O for rider
Armored Personnel Carrier	10,000 pounds	240 miles	@ 30 MPH	1,234 lbs. Dsl. ? oil + pumping/storage Equipment 3 lbs. MRE for rider 25 lbs. H2O for rider

For a dizzying variety of stats that demonstrate the growing & dangerous impact of fossil fuel consumption, visit the Transportation Energy Data Book, a project of the US Dept. of Energy. Another interesting resource I found is the Victoria Transport Policy Institute's Transportation Cost and Benefit Analysis or for something a bit less scientific and at times amusing, try Mrk.'s 469 and counting.... Reasons We Must Eliminate Automobiles.

Labels: bicycle_efficiency, bike_stats, Energy_Star, Ride_for_Climate