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Old 04-16-2010, 10:33 AM   #2 (permalink)
eco86
Almost fuel free!
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Georgia
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In the instance you described, I think that the woman on the moped was definately causing other drivers to burn more fuel by slowing and then accelerating rapidly. However, I don't think that hypermiling techniques performed on a mostly open stretch of road would cause other drivers to burn more fuel, provided that they have space to pass the hypermiling driver.
For instance, if I am driving on a road with no room to pass, I will drive at the speed limit to avoid stressing out other drivers. However, on the highway with few people around, I will work in some hypermiling techniques (P+G, etc) while driving in the right lane, so people have the option of passing me.
I do think that in some instances, hypermiling techniques can actually help save fuel for other drivers. For example, in heavy stop-and-go traffic, I try to maintain a 10 second following distance from the cars in front of me. This way, when people are alternating between 25 mph and a dead stop, I can maintain a constant 20 mph, thus smoothing out following traffic. By the time I close to a 5 second following distance, 9 times out of 10 the traffic will be moving by at least 20 mph again.
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