Why VMT Reduction Really Matters

With the release of a new white paper, Transportation for America offers its recommendations for the Kerry-Lieberman climate bill and suggests we re-focus on smart growth strategies that create compact, walkable communities that provide residents with the ability to meet their daily needs with fewer and shorter car trips.

The report points to Portland’s success story. The city’s smart growth policy and investment in public transportation and facilities for walking and bicycling has led to a rate of vehicle miles traveled (VMT) per capita that is 20 percent lower than the national average.

The white paper references Portland’s  $2.6 billion Green Dividend, prepared by CEOs for Cities. 

Among the many federal policy recommendations outlined in the paper is the distribution of federal transportation funds to “complete streets” with pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure that improves connectivity and reduces VMT. On the revenue side, the paper recommends VMT fees.

Not only is VMT reduction the primary way to impact climate change, but as our Green Dividend research shows, it is also a significant way to recapture money otherwise spent on gas and vehicle maintenance. In the largest 51 U.S. metro areas alone, reducing VMT by one mile per day amounts to $29 billion per year redistributed in local economies.

  

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