Government Documents for You

Effects of Gasoline Prices on Driving Behavior and Vehicle Markets. U.S. Congressional Budget Office, January 2008.
SUDOC: Y 10.2:G 21/5

**Excerpt from Preface**

Consumers in the past have not responded very much to small fluctuations in the price of gasoline. The recent large increases have led many people to make adjustments in the way they drive and in the kinds of vehicles they buy. This CBO report relates rising gasoline prices to changes in how fast people drive, the volume of highway traffic, and rail transit ridership. It also examines the effects on market shares, fuel economy, and pricing of cars and light trucks purchased over the past several years. This study provides an indication of the kinds of adjustments consumers will make if gasoline prices continue to rise, and of the implications of rising gasoline prices for policies that would discourage gasoline consumption and thus limit the growth in carbon dioxide emissions. As part of the CBO’s mandate, this is an objective, impartial analysis that makes no recommendations. The study is broken down into four sections: Gasoline Prices and Driving Behavior, Gasoline Prices and Vehicle Markets, Study Data, and Analytical Approach and Econometric Results.

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