US Will Require New Vehicles to Average 49 MPG by 2026

Led by Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, USDOT has mandated that all new passenger cars and light trucks reach an industry-wide fleet average of 49 mpg by 2026. This bumps up the estimated fleetwide average by approximately 10 mpg when compared to that of model year 2021, making the updated Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards the strongest revision to date.

Reducing the country’s collective reliance on fossil fuels has been top of mind recently, both for policymakers and for the average driver trying to commute to work. Between inflation and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, gas prices have been rising faster than Americans can realistically keep up with, creating financial catch-22s for full-time employees and gig workers alike. Climate change, meanwhile, is becoming all the more dire of a priority. Current events have accidentally formed a wake-up call to the fact that a widespread reliance on fossil fuel is not financially, politically, or environmentally sustainable.

The latest CAFE revision claims to help with this. “Today’s rule means that American families will be able to drive further before they have to fill up, saving hundreds of dollars per year,” Secretary Buttigieg said in a USDOT release. “These improvements will also make our country less vulnerable to global shifts in the price of oil, and protect communities by reducing carbon emissions by 2.5 billion metric tons.”

From 2026 through 2050, the new CAFE standards will reduce fuel use by more than 200 billion gallons. USDOT says its robust standards will challenge the automotive industry to continue to iterate on vehicles with better fuel economy, especially as more drivers from around the world turn to fuel-efficient or electric vehicles for economic and environmental reasons.

The changes also align with an executive order from President Biden. He recently called on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to review its fuel efficiency rules, which were last updated in 2020. The NHTSA was responsible for reviewing public comments regarding the CAFE revision before it was finalized.

“We are proud to fulfill President Biden’s mission to move us to a more sustainable future, one that strengthens American energy independence and helps put more money in American families’ pockets,” NHTSA’s Deputy Administrator Dr. Steven Cliff said in the release.

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