Green Commuting and Gasoline Taxes in the United States

José Ignacio Gimenez-Nadal () and José Alberto Molina
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José Ignacio Gimenez-Nadal: University of Zaragoza
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: Jose Ignacio Gimenez-Nadal ()

No 12377, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This paper analyzes how gasoline tax rates are related to the time workers in the United States spend commuting by private car, public transport, or with other physical modes of transport. Our identification strategy relies on both between-state differences and time variations in gasoline taxes. Using the American Time Use Surveys for the years 2003 to 2015, we find that higher gasoline tax rates are related with less time spent in commuting. Furthermore, higher gasoline taxes are related to a lower proportion of commuting by private car, and higher proportions of commuting by public transport and/or a physical mode of transport (e.g., walking, cycling). Our results highlight the importance of gasoline taxes (and prices) on the consumption of energy for personal transport, as higher gasoline taxes are related to a greater use of "green" modes of transport, showing that fuel taxes are important for good management of the environment.

Keywords: commuting time; public transport; walking/cycling; gasoline taxes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D1 Q4 R4 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 26 pages
Date: 2019-05
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ene, nep-env, nep-res, nep-tre and nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (20)

Published - published in: Energy Policy, 2019, 132, 324-331

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Journal Article: Green commuting and gasoline taxes in the United States (2019)
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