With the average gas price at over $3, using less gas should be the norm, but many people still idle their cars, delivery trucks, or buses. This not only wastes gas but also spews out greenhouse gases and creates poor air quality like smog that’s unhealthy to breathe.

A 2003 New York City Council report compiled findings about idling engines. It found that idling a car for more than 30 seconds wastes gas and is not good for the engine. And "when viewed in the context of global warming, idling your car is about as responsible as fanning the flames of your burning house." Diesel fumes are the worst for adding to environmental as well as health degradation. This is especially of concern for school children who are exposed to diesel exhaust from school buses. New York City has the highest asthma rate in the nation and idling vehicles are one of the main contributors to this.

New York state and city have laws concerning idling. Under state law vehicles can’t idle for longer than five minutes unless for emergency purposes, if the engine is needed for maintenance, or to run an auxiliary function such as a loader. And the city’s law is similar except that vehicles cannot idle for more than three minutes.

But a quick stroll around the streets of New York show that many delivery trucks, such as mail or parcel delivery and food delivery, idle for much longer than three minutes. Often times they even block traffic, leaving their truck to idle in the road while they make their delivery.

But the city is trying to fight pollution and global warming. It uses hybrid buses for public transportation and a small percentage of taxicabs are hybrid too. Mayor Bloomberg recently made a splash by declaring that all taxicabs need to be green by 2012.

Idling vehicles are a big problem. Each individual can either contribute positively or negatively to this detriment. The easiest decision to make is to turn off your engine instead of leaving it to idle.

keeping the earth ever green

To read more about New York City’s commitment to clean transportation, click here.

Lisa Tae-Ran Schroeder