But that’s not apples to apples. 4000 square feet ACed to the max and a couple of SUV
s in the garage is not something that many people who live in the City feel a need or have a capacity for.
And yes, the NYC subway system is not only more efficient per energy miles than those SUVs out in typical traffic, but also big cities enable much shorter commutes for many more people.
Got any data for your claims?
Here’s some that concludes otherwise:
http://www.academia.edu/5332884/Residential_Energy_Use_and_the_City-Suburb_Dichotomy
http://e360.yale.edu/feature/greenest_place_in_the_us_its_not_where_you_think/2203/
http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/01/the-comparatively-green-urban-jungle/?_r=0
http://www.frameworkhomeownership.org/blog/which-location-is-greener-city-or-suburb
About NYC commutes: the average New Yorker spends 48 minutes getting to work - 13 minutes above the national average
Of course urban planners, the NY Times, and leftist universities are going to promote urban life with half truths. It's a highly politicized subject.
Would you agree that price is a good proxy for energy consumption / pollution output that cuts though most of the politics? For example gold and diamonds cost so much because ultimately they require significant energy consumption to obtain.
When comparing transportation methods you have to look at total costs, not just direct energy cost. NYC subway construction costs more than $1 billion per mile, which indirectly results in about $1 billion in energy consumption, and there are significant maintenance costs. You also have to include the costs of all the government workers required to operate the system. Every penny of their cost becomes indirect energy consumption/pollution.
It's a big subject and there are a lot of lies and hidden motives out there. For a quick take on what is more energy efficient you can simply look at the total price. Many families cannot afford the total price of urban living without greatly reducing their standard of living. The higher total price is ultimately because of much higher indirect energy consumption. Not only are big cities highly unnatural environments and harmful to families in many ways, they are not green. That's a big libtard lie.