Transportation Segmentation Analysis

The U.S. transportation sector is responsible for 28% of total energy use and 69% of total U.S. petroleum consumption (EIA 2019; Davis et al. 2019). Almost 15 million barrels of petroleum are used every day to move people and goods across the country (EIA 2019; Davis et al. 2019). While petroleum fuels have unquestionably provided reliable and convenient mobility options to power the modern global economy, they have also created challenges associated with geopolitics, energy security, price volatility, and environmental impacts.Several fuels have been proposed as alternatives to petroleum products, and while today’s U.S. transportation is still dependent on petroleum for 92% of its energy use (EIA 2019; Davis et al. 2019), several scenarios are projecting a major role for alternative fuels in the future. In particular, multiple alternative fuel vehicles and powertrains have been proposed, including hybrid electric vehicles, compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles, liquefied petroleum gas vehicles, battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), and a number of different biofuels for internal combustion engines. Each powertrain has different characteristics in terms of performance, capital and fuel costs, range, fueling/charging speed and availability, and consumer acceptance.