Jan. 2011: Idle Free

Park City is idle free!
The City Council in Park City passed an anti-idling ordinance on December 16th, 2010.  The ordinance prohibits the idling of vehicles within City limits for longer than three minutes, barring some exceptions.  Park City is the first community in Utah to adopt an idling ordinance and joins a growing number of states and communities across the U.S. which have taken similar action to protect the environment and human health.

Impacts of Idling
Vehicle idling has numerous negative consequences including impacts on the environment, public health, and the inefficient use of fuel.

Air Quality: Emissions during idling contribute to the formation of ozone and particulate matter that are major sources of pollution in Utah.  Idle Free Utah notes that health issues, ranging from asthma and bronchitis to cancer, have been found linked to vehicle emissions.

Dollars and Cents: There is a direct financial benefit to those who limit their vehicle idling time. Studies indicate a financial “break-even point” of 10-30 seconds of idling time for balancing the minimal wear-and-tear on engines versus fuel saved from shutting off the vehicle. 

Natural Resources: Vehicle idling wastes an exorbitant amount of finite resources.  DOE estimates that unnecessary vehicle idling in the U.S. burns up to 2 billion gallons of fuel per year!  Compare this to the upper-bound estimate for oil spilled in the Exxon Valdez disaster: 31.5 million gallons.  Furthermore, the Energy Information Administration estimates that 52% of the petroleum consumed in the U.S. during 2009 was imported from other countries.

Help us mitigate these negative impacts by being idle-free!