The annual energy survey published by RBC Capital Markets this past week reaffirms the internal debate faced by every consumer in the United Sates between green and traditional activities. RBC Capital Markets has a vested interest in showing consumer struggles with energy prices due to its consulting role with oil, natural gas and coal companies. Readers should still understand some of the key points detailed in this survey to understand the decades-old problem that consumers have with lifestyle changes.
RBC Capital Markets has promoted that 58% of the 1,007 respondents think it is more important to keep their pocketbooks filled rather than choosing nascent renewable products. This finding dovetails with 93% of participants who think that the United States needs to move away from foreign oil sources by looking for new places to drill. The survey found that 59% of people across different ages, races and genders would favor drilling in the Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic to drive down prices.
The price of gasoline remains the main source of consternation among drivers throughout the United States according to this survey. Nearly two-thirds of the respondents showed support for a temporary respite on the federal gas tax. RBC Capital Markets found 20% of this group would increase local and regional trips because gas prices would be reasonable without taxes. A surprising 20% of respondents said that they would drive 10 miles or more to save 20 cents per gallon on gasoline.
There are plenty of results in this telephone survey that are promising for the move toward green transportation in the United States. Three-fifths of people surveyed stated that they would pay more for cleaner fuels though this term was not defined. Motor companies should take heart to the 22% of survey participants that will actively seek out hybrid cars the next time they shop for vehicles. RBC Capital Markets found out that 76% of respondents are driving less, 19% are planning to use public transportation in their daily lives and 11% are pondering car pooling arrangements.
RBC Capital Markets may not be neutral enough to pull off a survey that pleases all aspects of the green transportation community. These results show economic tensions that consumers have expressed in public polling since the environmental movement emerged in the early 1970s. This survey is likely to be picked apart by conservationists, auto makers and consumers to serve their own purposes. It is important that consumers, experts and business owners work toward changes in perception of renewable energies in the United States before major changes can be achieved.
