Energy consumption in the transportation sectors in China and the United States: A longitudinal comparative study

Abstract

Using Tapio elastic analysis, the differences and similarities of the energy consumption in the transportation sectors in China and the United States were compared. The results showed that the energy consumption of the transportation sectors in the two countries in 2000–2015 had a weak decoupling overall from economic growth in the long term. The decoupling indicator (0.61) in China was about ten times that (0.069) of the United States. Namely, the dependence of China’s transportation sector on energy consumption was far larger than that of the United States. Furthermore, using a logarithmic mean Divisia index (LMDI) model, the factors influencing the energy consumption in transportation sectors in China and the United States were analyzed from five perspectives. Based on this model, the reason why the two countries show decoupling difference was explained. Relevant policies implications for energy conservation and emission reduction in the transportation sector were discussed.