> Speaking of efficiency, what does a Greyhound Bus or Amtrak train get as far as passenger miles/gallon? The DOE has calculated normalized energy usage among

> Speaking of efficiency, what does a Greyhound Bus or Amtrak train get as far as passenger miles/gallon? The DOE has calculated normalized energy usage among the various modes to BTUs per passenger-mile. Data for 2011: http://www.rita.dot.gov/bts/sites/rita.dot.gov.bts/files/publications/national_transportation_statistics/html/table_04_20.html http://www.rita.dot.gov/bts/sites/rita.dot.gov.bts/files/pub... Amtrak: 1628 Airlines (domestic): 2597 Airlines (domestic): 3519 Automobiles (short wheel base): 3898 Automobiles (long wheel base): 5479 Transit buses: 3343 This summary data must be interpreted with caution. "Intercity bus" does not get a listing, only "Transit motor bus." Long wheel base automobiles includes SUVs as well as minivans. Amtrak operations include both diesel and electric trains, and count only the actual electricity drawn -- not the heat required to generate that power. (Most of Amtrak's electric operations are in the northeast, which gets a lot of its electricity from nuclear and gas.) Interestingly, domestic airline operations are more efficient than international. This is likely due to the reduced fuel loads, increased load rates, and the greater efficiency of turboprops.