Data Source: California Air Resources Board, California Greenhouse Gas Inventory - by Economic Sector and Activity; U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Analysis by CEC Economics
Highlights
- Emissions from on-road light-duty vehicles (passenger cars, light-duty trucks & SUVs, and motorcycles) fell slightly in 2023 relative to 2022, by 0.6% (-0.6 MMTCO2e). Historically, emissions from these vehicles accounted for slightly under 70% of the transportation sector’s emissions. Despite the lower emissions, these vehicles accounted for a rising share (73.3% in 2023, up from 70.3% in 2022) of the transportation sector’s emissions due to the significant reduction in emissions from the heavy-duty vehicles subsector.
- Emissions from heavy-duty trucks (which make up over 90% of heavy-duty vehicles subsector’s emissions) fell by 17.7% (-4.7 MMTCO2e) from 2022 to 2023. Emissions from both passenger cars and heavy-duty vehicles were both below 2020’s levels, but the causes of emission reductions differ. For passenger cars, the falling emissions were due to a consumer shift in preference of larger and less fuel-efficient pick-up trucks and SUVs (emissions from these vehicles totaled 58.6 MMTCO2e in 2023, which is similar to 2015 and 2016 levels). On the other hand, the emission reductions from the heavy-duty vehicles subsector is due to the increased use of biodiesel instead of petroleum diesel under the LCFS. Transportation fuel consumption within the transportation sector totaled 1,967 trillion British thermal units (BTUs) in 2023, down 26 trillion BTUs or 1.3% from 2022. The GHG emissions per unit of fuel consumed were 6.28 MMTCO2e/hundred trillion Btu in 2023, down 2.9% from 2022.
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