Barbara Boxer: “Today I want to talk about choices in transportation. Most Americans who travel to work get there by car, some perhaps…”

“Today I want to talk about choices in transportation. Most Americans who travel to work get there by car, some perhaps by bus or commuter rail. Some even fly by jet airplane. These are all choices in transportation modes, but they all have one thing in common: oil. As we enter the 21st century, we must expand our choices in how we power transportation in this country. The percentage of total energy use devoted to transportation is now at its highest level ever. Transportation accounts for two-thirds of the country's total petroleum use, and transportation is 97 percent dependent on petroleum. Americans are traveling by car more and more. The total number of vehicle miles traveled in California has increased by 10 percent since 1991. Meanwhile, fuel economy has decreased for the second year in a row. This dependence on petroleum puts our economy foolishly at risk. The arteries of our economy run on oil; and as we have seen with the latest gasoline price hikes, clogged arteries can cause heart problems in this economy. The cost of our oil addiction is paid not just at the pump but at our hospitals and doctors' offices. According to the Coalition for Clean Air, diesel exhaust alone has been associated with up to 30,000 lung cancer deaths in California. Think about this: thirty thousand painful, premature deaths from one source in one State.”