Recent Streetsblog USA posts about Fuel Efficiency

A Last Word on ‘Cash for Clunkers’

By Ryan Avent | | 1 Comment
One thing the government’s CARS program — a.k.a. "cash for clunkers" — has clearly stimulated is commentary. For a policy involving a shade under $3 billion in federal spending, it has enjoyed no shortage of media coverage. (Photo: Newsday) In part this is because the program looks like a big success, and certainly congressional leaders […]

The Times’ Thickheaded Train Tag Team

By Ryan Avent | | 1 Comment
The New York Times has now turned loose writers at two of its economics blogs to make weak arguments against the construction of high-speed rail lines. Eric Morris of UCLA’s Institute of Transportation Studies (Photo: ericandrewmorris.com) I have been following Ed Glaeser’s attempt to do a back-of-the-envelope assessment of the costs and benefits of a […]

Ed Glaeser’s Rail Fail

By Ryan Avent | | 32 Comments
The story so far: Ed Glaeser recently began an effort to assess the costs and benefits of constructing high-speed rail lines at the New York Times’ Economix blog. Last week, he posted his first substantive take on the issue, an attempt to estimate direct costs and benefits from a hypothetical line between Houston and Dallas. […]

GM Claims a 230 MPG Volt — Is it For Real?

By Elana Schor | | 42 Comments
General Motors made a media splash this morning by announcing that its Chevy Volt would get 230 miles per gallon in city driving, but the claim quickly began proving little more than a broad estimate. The stage for GM’s announcement today. (Photo: CNN) GM based its Volt claim on draft rules from the Environmental Protection […]