There are plenty of ways to kill the planet, but Americans seem to prefer the hit-and-run: Emissions from cars and light trucks account for 17 percent of the nation's annual greenhouse-gas production.

Of course, not every person guzzles gasoline and spews pollution at the same rate. Heck, the folks in Seattle are so good at minimizing their rides' contributions to global warming you'd think their cars run on coffee. Then there's Arlington, Texas, where the drivers burn through fuel like there's no tomorrow--and at this rate, there may not be.

To identify which cities are driving us to extinction, we tabulated data on gasoline consumption, miles racked up annually, air quality (ozone and particle pollutants), vehicle efficiency (that is, their size, age, and frequency of tuneups), and mass-transit quality and usage. Our sources? We tapped the National Transit Database, the American Lung Association, the Texas Transportation Institute at Texas AM, SimplyMap, and the Energy Information Administration.

So watch the lead foot (you'll use less unleaded) and, when possible, engage your car's green setting: Park.

Greenest drivers

1          Seattle, WA                  A+

2          Burlington, VT                A+

3          Portland, OR                 A+

4          Madison, WI                  A

5          Fargo, ND                     A

6          Rochester, NY              A

7          Minneapolis, MN            A-

8          Spokane, WA                A-

9          San Francisco, CA         A-

10         Norfolk, VA                    A-

11         Boston, MA                   A-

12         Oakland, CA                  A-

13         Buffalo, NY                    A-

14         Miami, FL                      B+

15         Tucson, AZ                    B+

16         Orlando, FL                   B

17         Bangor, ME                  B

18         Anchorage, AK              B

19         Newark, NJ                    B

20         Lexington, KY                B

21         Jersey City, NJ              B

22         Hartford, CT                   B

23         Fremont, CA                  B

24         Denver, CO                    B

25         Pittsburgh, PA               B

26         Cleveland, OH                B

27         Honolulu, HI                   B

28         Lincoln, NE                   B-

29         Richmond, VA               B-

30         Aurora, CO                    B-

31         Durham, NC                  B-

32         Lubbock, TX                  B-

33         Des Moines, IA              B-

34         Corpus Christi, TX          B-

35         Salt Lake City, UT          B-

36         Boise, ID                       B-

37         Sioux Falls, SD             C+

38         Greensboro, NC           C+

39         Providence, RI               C+

40         Washington, DC            C+

41         Tampa, FL                     C+

42         Baltimore, MD               C+

43         Austin, TX                     C+

44         Wichita, KS                   C+

45         New York, NY               C+

46         St. Louis, MO                C+

47         Kansas City, MO           C+

48         Philadelphia, PA            C+

49         Milwaukee, WI               C

50         Jacksonville, FL             C

51         Chicago, IL                    C

52         Baton Rouge, LA           C

53         St. Paul, MN                 C

54         Columbia, SC                C

55         Las Vegas, NV              C

56         Raleigh, NC                   C

57         San Jose, CA                C

58         Jackson, MS                 C-

59         St. Petersburg, FL         C-

60         Phoenix, AZ                  C-

61         San Diego, CA               C-

62         Atlanta, GA                   C-

63         Colorado Springs,CO      C-

64         Cincinnati, OH               C-

65         Sacramento, CA            C-

continued...

66         Little Rock, AR              C-

67         Dallas, TX                      C-

68         Albuquerque, NM           C-

69         Fort Wayne, IN              C-

70         Oklahoma  City, OK       C-

71         Omaha, NE                   C-

72         Billings, MT                   C-

73         Cheyenne, WY              C-

74         Grand Rapids, MI           C-

75         Bakersfield, CA              D+

76         Modesto, CA                 D+

77         Wilmington, DE             D+

78         Nashville, TN                 D+

79         Montgomery, AL            D+

80         Memphis, TN                 D+

81         Columbus, OH               D+

82         Detroit, MI                     D+

83         Anaheim, CA                 D+

84         Los Angeles, CA            D+

85         Louisville, KY                 D+

86         Houston, TX                   D+

87         Manchester, NH            D+

88         Toledo, OH                    D+

89         Charleston, WV             D

90         Charlotte, NC                 D

Fossil fools

91         Fresno, CA                    D

92         Tulsa, OK                      D

93         Indianapolis, IN              D-

94         San Antonio, TX            F

95         Fort Worth, TX               F

96         Birmingham, AL             F

97         Riverside, CA                 F

98         El Paso, TX                   F

99         Yonkers, NY                  F

100       Arlington, TX                  F

 

Originally Published on: July 1, 2008

 

• Spend All Weekends Outside
• Enjoy The Great Outdoors
• Is Your Car Killing You?
• The Dangers Of Outdoor Workouts
• Stop Driving, Start Cycling