The Theme
This map shows the average fuel efficiency of light-duty vehicles
with the model year 1990 for the populated area of each census division.
The year, 1990, is the reference year for the target of greenhouse
gas reductions for the Kyoto
Protocol.
The average fuel efficiency of light-duty vehicles, which measures
miles travelled per gallon, was defined by averaging the tested
fuel efficiency rating for each vehicle's class, weighted by that
class' market share in each census division.
Light-duty vehicles include all cars and light trucks. The light-duty
vehicle size classes, defined by the US Environmental Protection
Agency, were adopted for the vehicle classification. This classification
has 15 classes: six classes for automobiles, six classes for light
trucks, and three classes for station wagons. Among these 15 classes,
seven prominent classes account for the large majority of new light-duty
vehicle sales in each census division. The prominent classes are subcompact cars, compact cars, midsize cars, large cars, small vans,
small utility vehicles and large pickups. The remaining classes
include two seater cars, minicompacts, small pickups, large vans,
large utility vehicles, and three size classes of wagons.
Note that there are no data available for the Territories.
Relation to Climate Change
Because vehicles consume a substantial part of energy in Canada,
average vehicle fuel efficiency is an important indicator for greenhouse
gas emission and climate change policy making. The lower the fuel
efficiency, the higher the emission per vehicle, and, consequently,
the greater the contribution to greenhouse gases. Vehicle market
share is one of the two major factors determining average vehicle
fuel efficiency (the other being the fuel efficiency of a vehicle
class per se). The map of average fuel efficiency, therefore,
suggests the mix of vehicle classes in a particular area.
Spatial Variation
The map reveals that there are significant spatial variations in
the average fuel efficiency of light-duty vehicles with the model
year 1990. The areas with the high average fuel efficiency are urban
areas. The region with the highest average fuel efficiency is southern
Quebec where vehicle purchasers tend to buy proportionally smaller
cars. The areas with the lowest average fuel efficiency are in the
western provinces and in the northern parts of many provinces, as
larger trucks (such as pick-up trucks) are more common. Generally,
fuel efficiency increases from west to east across Canada. Alberta
has the least efficient population of light-duty vehicles for the
model year 1990, whereas Quebec has the most efficient mix of the
1990 light-duty vehicles.
The pie charts in the map show that the percentages of total 1990
light-duty vehicle sales roughly match provincial population totals
in 1990. In terms of sales mix, subcompact cars took the largest
market share of the total 1990 light vehicle sales across Canada.
In relation to the spatial pattern of average light vehicle fuel
efficiency, the market shares of smaller vehicles generally increase
from west to east across Canada. Compared to other provinces, Quebec
has a significantly larger market share of subcompact cars. It also
has the smallest shares of small sport utility and other vehicle
types, which are mostly less fuel-efficient.
Data Source
The measures for this map were derived by the GeoAccess Division
of Natural Resources Canada, based on the 1992 Canadian Vehicle
in Operation Census database, produced by DesRosiers Automotive
Consultants of Toronto. The fuel consumption
ratings and vehicle size classification information were added into
the database by the Transportation Energy Use Division, Energy Sector,
Natural Resources Canada.
The digital data for this map can be downloaded
here.
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