Automobile Costs
Fairbanksans pay a high dollar cost to operate their automobiles. Just how high is that cost? While some families will get by for less, the table below presents estimates that are realistic for many others.
| | | |
| Compact Sedan | 4-Wheel Drive Pickup | |
| Initial purchase price | $5,000 | $8,000 |
| Interest for 3 years | 1,650 | 2,640 |
| Trade-in after 3 years | -2,000 | -3,000 |
| Net cost per year | 1,550 | 2,546 |
| Fuel for 12,000 miles | 640 | 1,200 |
| Insurance | 400 | 500 |
| Lubricants and Maintenance | 265 | 395 |
| Total expense per year | 2,855 | 4,641 |
| Cost per mile | 0.24 | 0.39 |
| Cost per day | 7.82 | 12.72 |
Part of the high cost comes from the low gasoline mileage obtained in city driving during cold weather. Automobiles operate very inefficiently at the low speeds necessary when roads are icy and the visibility is hampered by ice fog. That inefficiency compounds the ice fog problem and contributes to higher carbon monoxide pollution.
As residents of one of the most heavily carbon monoxide polluted cities in the nation, Fairbanksans may dislike the ice fog and the high dollar cost of our automobiles but, in the long run, carbon monoxide may cost us more. There are ways to minimize the problem, but to eliminate it entirely we probably must stop burning hydrocarbons in our valley. Right now that seems to be a financial impossibility. Still, the future may provide an affordable way.
