Portland's green dividend

The transportation and land-use policies of Portland, Oregon, offer residents a “green dividend” of lower commute times and costs, according to Joe Cortright, an economist with Impresa Inc. and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. Average commutes in Portland are 20.3 miles, 17 percent less than the average of 24.3 miles for the 33 most populous metro areas, he writes in a July white paper. That saves 2.9 billion commuting miles a year, translating to $1.1 billion in automobile expenses and 100 million commuting hours.

Portland residents are twice as likely to use transit and seven times more likely to commute by bicycle, he notes. Portland residents consume 10 percent less motor fuel than average Americans and are 16 percent less likely to buy a new car — perhaps because they are not wearing out the old ones as quickly. The full paper is available at www.ceosforcities.org