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Driving for fun? Comparing the effect of fuel prices on weekday and weekend fuel consumption

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  • Frondel, Manuel
  • Vance, Colin

Abstract

Focusing on individual motorists in car-owning households in Germany, this paper investigates the determinants of automobile travel, with the specific aim of quantifying the effects of fuel prices and person-level attributes on travel conducted over a five-day week and weekend. Our analysis is predicated on the notion that car use is an individual decision, albeit one that is dependent on intra-household allocation processes, thereby building on a growing body of literature that has identified the importance of socioeconomic factors such as employment status, gender, and the presence of children in determining both access to and use of the car. To capture this two-stage decision process, we employ the two-part model, which consists of probit and OLS estimators, and derive elasticity estimates that incorporate both the discrete and continuous choices pertaining to car use. With fuel price elasticity estimates ranging between -Â 0.45 and -Â 0.50, our results suggest raising prices via fuel taxes to be a promising energy conservation and climate protection measure.

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  • Frondel, Manuel & Vance, Colin, 2010. "Driving for fun? Comparing the effect of fuel prices on weekday and weekend fuel consumption," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 102-109, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:32:y:2010:i:1:p:102-109
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    8. Manuel Frondel & Jorg Peters & Colin Vance, 2008. "Identifying the Rebound: Evidence from a German Household Panel," The Energy Journal, , vol. 29(4), pages 145-164, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Manuel Frondel & Colin Vance, 2010. "A Count Data Analysis of Ridership in Germany’s Public Transport," Ruhr Economic Papers 0209, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    2. Vivien Procher & Colin Vance, 2012. "Heterogeneity in the Correlates of Motorized and Non-Motorized Travel in Germany – The Intervening Role of Gender," Ruhr Economic Papers 0314, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    3. Galvin, Ray, 2020. "Who co-opted our energy efficiency gains? A sociology of macro-level rebound effects and US car makers," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 142(C).
    4. Vance, Colin & Peistrup, Matthias, 2012. "She's Got a Ticket to Ride: Gender and Public Transit Passes," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 39(6), pages 1105-1119.
    5. Frondel, Manuel & Ritter, Nolan & Vance, Colin, 2012. "Heterogeneity in the rebound effect: Further evidence for Germany," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 461-467.
    6. Ehrlich, Lars & Wolf, André, 2015. "Determinanten und Risiken der Energiepreisentwicklung und ihre Implikationen für den städtischen Verkehr: Studie für die Hamburger Hochbahn AG," HWWI Policy Papers 93, Hamburg Institute of International Economics (HWWI).
    7. Yang, Dujuan & Timmermans, Harry, 2013. "Analysis of influence of fuel price on individual activity-travel time expenditure," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 40-55.
    8. Frondel, Manuel & Marggraf, Clemens & Sommer, Stephan & Vance, Colin, 2021. "Reducing vehicle cold start emissions through carbon pricing: Evidence from Germany," Ruhr Economic Papers 896, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    9. Pfeiffer, Birte & Mulder, Peter, 2013. "Explaining the diffusion of renewable energy technology in developing countries," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 285-296.
    10. Costolanski, Peter & Elahi, Raihan & Iimi, Atsushi & Kitchlu, Rahul, 2013. "Impact evaluation of free-of-charge CFL bulb distribution in Ethiopia," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6383, The World Bank.
    11. Frondel Manuel & Vance Colin, 2013. "On Interaction Effects: The Case of Heckit and Two-Part Models," Journal of Economics and Statistics (Jahrbuecher fuer Nationaloekonomie und Statistik), De Gruyter, vol. 233(1), pages 22-38, February.
    12. Ritter, Nolan, 2012. "Beyond the Average Elasticity – Applying Quantile Panel Regression to German Household Mobility Data," Ruhr Economic Papers 392, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    13. Arpita Asha Khanna & Ilka Dubernet & Patrick Jochem, 2025. "Do car drivers respond differently to fuel price changes? Evidence from German household data," Transportation, Springer, vol. 52(2), pages 579-613, April.
    14. Tovar, Miguel A., 2011. "An integral evaluation of dieselisation policies for households' cars," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(9), pages 5228-5242, September.
    15. Manuel Frondel & Colin Vance, 2012. "On Interaction Effects: The Case of Heckit and Two-Part Models," Ruhr Economic Papers 0309, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    16. Hössinger, Reinhard & Link, Christoph & Sonntag, Axel & Stark, Juliane, 2017. "Estimating the price elasticity of fuel demand with stated preferences derived from a situational approach," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 154-171.
    17. Procher, Vivien & Vance, Colin, 2012. "Heterogeneity in the Correlates of Motorized and Non-motorized Travel in Germany: The Intervening Role of Gender," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 2320, pages 72-79.
    18. Galvin, Ray, 2016. "Rebound effects from speed and acceleration in electric and internal combustion engine cars: An empirical and conceptual investigation," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 172(C), pages 207-216.
    19. Montag, Josef, 2015. "The simple economics of motor vehicle pollution: A case for fuel tax," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C), pages 138-149.
    20. Frondel, Manuel & Vance, Colin, 2011. "Rarely enjoyed? A count data analysis of ridership in Germany's public transport," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 425-433, March.
    21. Nolan Ritter, 2012. "Beyond the Average Elasticity – Applying Quantile Panel Regression to German Household Mobility Data," Ruhr Economic Papers 0392, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    22. Manuel Frondel & Nolan Ritter & Colin Vance, 2010. "Heterogeneity in the Rebound Eff ect – Further Evidence for Germany," Ruhr Economic Papers 0227, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    23. Manuel Frondel & Colin James Vance, 2012. "Interpreting the outcomes of two-part models," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(10), pages 987-992, July.

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