Carless days was a petrol demand reduction scheme active in New Zealand from July 1979 to May 1980. [1] Introduced by the Third National Government of New Zealand, during the 1979 oil crisis, the scheme prohibited owners of private petrol-powered vehicles to drive on a self-designated day of the week. The enabling regulations were one of several attempts to help the New Zealand economy after the oil shocks of the late 1970s—other such policies included the Think Big strategy.
New Zealand in the first half of 1978 sourced 39% of its oil from Iran. [2] The Iranian Revolution and the subsequent 1979 oil shock led to a sudden reduction in oil available on the market. Consequently, international oil prices increased by a factor of 15 in nominal terms or a factor of 7 in real terms between 1972 and 1980. Despite active price controls in New Zealand, local prices also rose rapidly from $0.10 in 1972 to $0.62 in 1980. [3] These price increases decreased demand; a 24.8% price increase in May before the introduction of the careless days scheme reduced petrol demand by 11%. [4] As a result of the oil shock and the difficulty in obtaining oil elsewhere in a tight market, in March 1979, the country was receiving approximately 10-15% less oil than it normally would. According to Energy Minister Bill Birch, buying oil on the spot market to supplement supplies was not possible due to the New Zealand's unfavourable balance of payments. Nonetheless, by June 1979, the oil shortage had been reduced to 5%. [5]
Prior to the introduction of carless days, the government had implemented other measures to reduce petrol demand. One measure was the reduction of the speed limit from 100 km/h to 80 km/h in December 1973 during the earlier 1973 oil crisis. The lower speed limit remained in place until July 1986. [6] Another measure implemented in February 1979, was the ban on the sale of petrol on weekends to most motorists with exceptions for emergency situations and essential users. [7] Several countries including Switzerland, the Netherlands and West Germany implemented similar carless Sundays during the 1973 oil crisis. [8] The government also encouraged the use of alternative fuels like Compressed natural gas and Liquefied petroleum gas. Interest free loans were provided for the conversion of vehicles to run on gas and subsidies were provided for gas refueling infrastructure. By 1985, nearly 7% of the car fleet had been fitted to run on CNG. [9] In March 1979, the government launched a publicity campaign urging the public to reduce petrol use by 10% warning that it would have to implement carless days if sustained cuts to consumption were not made. [2]
According to Bill Birch, the minister of energy at the time, the government considered rationing, but chose carless days instead as it required less regulation and was easier to start and suspend quickly. [1] A survey of 2200 people held in March 1979, showed that rationing was the preferred option among respondents to reduce petrol use followed by weekend closings and carless days. [10]
Under the carless days regulations, the owners of most private petrol-powered motor vehicles under 4,400 pounds (2,000 kg), with the exception of motorcycles, were required to refrain from using their car on one day of the week, that day being designated by the owner. Exemptions were issued for essential services and those with no alternatives to using their own vehicles. [11] Each vehicle displayed a coloured sticker on its windscreen which noted the day on which it could not be used. Infringements were punishable by a fine of up to $400 (approx. $2500 in 2022 dollars).
Thursday was the most frequently chosen carless day. By the time the regulations were suspended, 43% of registered vehicles had exemptions. [4] A black market for exemption stickers and imitations of them quickly developed, weakening the effectiveness of the scheme. There was also a distinct problem in inequality—households that could afford to run two cars could simply choose different days for the two cars and continue to drive on all seven days as before.
The carless days regulations are secondary legislation under the Economic Stabilisation Act 1948 and therefore did not require approval from parliament. Carless days were suspended in May 1980, [12] revoked in December 1980 and in 1981 replaced with petrol rationing legislation (the Petroleum Demand Restraint Act 1981) that can be invoked in the future. [4]
Surveys showed that 5-10% of the population bound by the rules drove regularly on their carless day. Journalist Richard Griffin said that "it was a bit like drunk driving - if you could get away with it you did. There was no stigma attached..." [13]
There were 3,136 successful prosecutions against those who broke the carless days rules. It is estimated that approximately 0.2% of the people breaking the rules were caught and prosecuted. [4] The first person fined was Gordon Marks of Christchurch, who forgot that at 3:45am after a post-party nap in his car his "car-less day" had started at 2am. He was fined $50 rather than the $400 maximum fine.
The government claimed that the plan reduced petrol consumption by 3%, while independent analysis estimated a reduction of 3.6%. Those that were subject to the scheme reduced their petrol consumption by 5%. It is estimated that the price would have had to rise by 87.5% to achieve the same reduction in petrol consumption achieved by carless days. [4]
Carless days led to notable mode shift for work and shopping trips. While cars continued to be used for the majority of work trips on carless days (from 88% to 66%), there was a notable increase in car pooling (5% to 19%), bus (2% to 7%), motorbike (2% to 7%) and bicycle usage (7% to 12%). Shopping trips while still predominantly done by car on carless days (88% to 55%), led to mode shift towards bicycle usage (3% to 15%) and walking (9% to 20%). Recreational trips also continued to be taken by car on carless days (88% to 66%), however a significant proportion (33%) of trips were postponed and there was little evidence of mode shift. [14]
The terms gasoline, petrol, or simply gas identify and describe the petrochemical product characterized as a transparent, yellowish, and flammable liquid normally used as a fuel for spark-ignited internal combustion engines. When formulated as a fuel for engines, gasoline is chemically composed of organic compounds derived from the fractional distillation of petroleum and later chemically enhanced with gasoline additives.
An energy crisis or energy shortage is any significant bottleneck in the supply of energy resources to an economy. In literature, it often refers to one of the energy sources used at a certain time and place, in particular, those that supply national electricity grids or those used as fuel in industrial development. Population growth has led to a surge in the global demand for energy in recent years. In the 2000s, this new demand – together with Middle East tension, the falling value of the US dollar, dwindling oil reserves, concerns over peak oil, and oil price speculation – triggered the 2000s energy crisis, which saw the price of oil reach an all-time high of $147.30 per barrel ($926/m3) in 2008.
A drop in oil production in the wake of the Iranian Revolution led to an energy crisis in 1979. Although the global oil supply only decreased by approximately four percent, the oil markets' reaction raised the price of crude oil drastically over the next 12 months, more than doubling it to $39.50 per barrel ($248/m3). The sudden increase in price was connected with fuel shortages and long lines at gas stations similar to the 1973 oil crisis.
The fuel protests in the United Kingdom were a series of campaigns held in response to the rising petrol and diesel fuel prices for road vehicle use. There have been three notable campaigns amongst many other protests in the 21st century. The first major protest in 2000 was primarily led by independent lorry owner-operators. One group of lorry owner-operators from the South East of England formed a protest group called "TransAction" that protested at oil refineries and fuel depots in Essex. Protests and blockades of oil facilities caused widespread disruption to the supply of petroleum products. The aim of the protests was to secure a reduction in the fuel duty rate on petrol and diesel, which the government refused to enact. After the protest ended, the government did announce a freeze on fuel duties, and promised changes would be made to the way that goods vehicles were taxed, which would include the taxing of foreign vehicles operating on British roads.
Think Big was an interventionist state economic strategy of the Third National Government of New Zealand, promoted by the Prime Minister Robert Muldoon (1975–1984) and his National government in the early 1980s. The Think Big schemes saw the government borrow heavily overseas, running up a large external deficit, and using the funds for large-scale industrial projects. Petrochemical and energy related projects figured prominently, designed to utilise New Zealand's abundant natural gas to produce ammonia, urea fertiliser, methanol and petrol.
From the mid-1980s to September 2003, the inflation-adjusted price of a barrel of crude oil on NYMEX was generally under US$25/barrel in 2008 dollars. During 2003, the price rose above $30, reached $60 by 11 August 2005, and peaked at $147.30 in July 2008. Commentators attributed these price increases to many factors, including Middle East tension, soaring demand from China, the falling value of the U.S. dollar, reports showing a decline in petroleum reserves, worries over peak oil, and financial speculation.
Rationing was introduced temporarily by the British government several times during the 20th century, during and immediately after a war.
Autogas or LPG is liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) used as a fuel in internal combustion engines in vehicles as well as in stationary applications such as generators. It is a mixture of propane and butane.
Transportation demand management or travel demand management (TDM) is the application of strategies and policies to increase the efficiency of transportation systems, that reduce travel demand, or to redistribute this demand in space or in time.
Various energy conservation measures are taken in the United Kingdom.
The usage and pricing of gasoline results from factors such as crude oil prices, processing and distribution costs, local demand, the strength of local currencies, local taxation, and the availability of local sources of gasoline (supply). Since fuels are traded worldwide, the trade prices are similar. The price paid by consumers largely reflects national pricing policy. Most countries impose taxes on gasoline (petrol), which causes air pollution and climate change; whereas a few, such as Venezuela, subsidize the cost. Some country's taxes do not cover all the negative externalities, that is they do not make the polluter pay the full cost. Western countries have among the highest usage rates per person. The largest consumer is the United States.
The 2007 gasoline rationing plan in Iran was launched by president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's cabinet to reduce that country's fuel consumption. Although Iran is one of the world's largest producers of petroleum, rapid increases in demand and limited refining capacity have forced the country to import about 40% of its gasoline, at an annual cost of up to USD $7 billion.
Marsden Point Oil Refinery was a 96,000 BPD refinery located at Marsden Point, Whangarei, Northland, New Zealand. It was the only oil refinery in New Zealand, and is operated by Refining NZ. The point was named after Samuel Marsden. The regional survey map shows it was called Marsden Point in 1907.
Road space rationing, also known as alternate-day travel, driving restriction and no-drive days, is a travel demand management strategy aimed to reduce the negative externalities generated by urban air pollution or peak urban travel demand in excess of available supply or road capacity, through artificially restricting demand by rationing the scarce common good road capacity, especially during the peak periods or during peak pollution events. This objective is achieved by restricting traffic access into an urban cordon area, city center (CBD), or district based upon the last digits of the license number on pre-established days and during certain periods, usually, the peak hours.
The environmental effects of transport in Australia are considerable. Australia subsidizes fossil fuel energy, keeping prices artificially low and raising greenhouse gas emissions due to the increased use of fossil fuels as a result of the subsidies. The Australian Energy Regulator and state agencies such as the New South Wales' Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal set and regulate electricity prices, thereby lowering production and consumer cost.
Petroleum has been a major industry in the United States since shortly after the oil discovery in the Oil Creek area of Titusville, Pennsylvania, in 1859. The industry includes exploration, production, processing (refining), transportation, and marketing of natural gas and petroleum products. In 2018, the U.S. became the world's largest crude oil producer, producing 15% of global crude oil, surpassing Russia and Saudi Arabia. The leading oil-producing area in the United States in 2019 was Texas, followed by the offshore federal zone of the Gulf of Mexico, North Dakota and New Mexico. In 2020, the top five U.S. oil-producing states were Texas (43%), North Dakota (10.4%), New Mexico (9.2%), Oklahoma (4.1%), and Colorado (4.0%).
The use of biofuels varies by region. The world leaders in biofuel development and use are Brazil, United States, France, Sweden and Germany.
Odd–even rationing is a method of rationing in which access to some resource is restricted to some of the population on any given day. In a common example, drivers of private vehicles may be allowed to drive, park, or purchase gasoline on alternating days, according to whether the last digit in their license plate is even or odd. Similarly, during a drought, houses can be restricted from using water outdoors according to the parity of the house number.
Bharat stage emission standards (BSES) are emission standards instituted by the Government of India to regulate the output of air pollutants from compression ignition engines and Spark-ignition engines equipment, including motor vehicles. The standards and the timeline for implementation are set by the Central Pollution Control Board under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
The petroleum industry in India dates back to 1889 when the first oil deposits in the country were discovered near the town of Digboi in the state of Assam. The natural gas industry in India began in the 1960s with the discovery of gas fields in Assam and Maharashtra. As on 31 March 2018, India had estimated crude oil reserves of 594.49 million metric tonnes (Mt) and natural gas reserves of 1339.57 billion cubic metres of natural gas (BCM).
