From education through consumer publications such as the Gas Watcher's Guide and Your Driving Costs to ongoing programs such as AAA's Fuel Gauge Report, AAA's public education efforts toward environmental responsibility and conservation are still going strong.

Effective use of energy is learned behavior. To conserve, we must slow down and find ways to do more with less. The benefits of fuel conservation are a healthier environment, financial savings and improved safety on our roads. The car or truck you drive, how it's maintained and where and how you drive are the most important factors in conserving fuel and staying safe behind the wheel.

A Little History

For years, AAA has periodically published guides to car care and fuel economy. In 1943, AAA published its first guide, Keep 'em Rolling, to assist with gasoline rationing required by World War II.

The first Gas Watcher's Guide was produced in 1974, and the brochure is still produced today. The current Gas Watcher's Guide is available at local AAA offices.

How Much Does it Cost to Drive?

Ever wonder how much you're really paying to drive your car every year?

$10,280

That's how much a person driving a 2005 Ford Taurus 15,000 miles a year can expect to pay, excluding loan payments.

In coming up with its annual driving-cost estimates for five vehicle classes, AAA figures in average fuel costs, routine maintenance, tires, insurance, license and registration, loan finance charges and depreciation costs. AAA has been conducting this annual analysis since 1950. That year, driving a car 10,000 miles annually cost 9 cents a mile, and gasoline sold for 27 cents per gallon.

With Your Driving Costs, AAA brings motorists the tools and advice they need to estimate their operating and ownership costs to get a better understanding of the total impact of their vehicles. The annual guide includes a worksheet for figuring your own costs.

The current Your Driving Costs brochure is available at local AAA offices.

Current Fuel Prices

Keep track of daily fuel prices through AAA's Fuel Gauge Web site - used by media outlets around the world.

Additional AAA Public Education Efforts The bulk of AAA's public education efforts are designed to promote safety to children, teens and adults. While these efforts are not directed at improving the environment, AAA thought it would be helpful to remind our 50 million members of some of our other important efforts toward improving safety. You may have heard of some of the programs:

• School Safety Patrol - Since 1920, AAA has sponsored the national School Safety Patrol program, in which some 500,000 children in 50,000 schools nationwide participate.

• Traffic Safety Educational Materials - Ever heard of "Otto the Auto"? He's one of the characters AAA uses to educate grade schoolers on issues such as bicycle safety, pedestrian safety and school bus safety, among others.

• Child Passenger Safety - AAA produces many educational materials targeted at helping parents properly buckle their children up. In fact, this year AAA introduced "Seated, Safe & Secure," a three-pronged approach to improving the startling statistics of children who are killed and injured each year in crashes.

• Driver education - AAA pioneered formal driver education in the 1930s and still is the largest producer of driver education materials in the country today.

• Teen driver safety - AAA was a strong supporter of developing graduated driver licensing laws in all 50 states. These laws protect new drivers through a stepped approach to full driving privileges. Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for our nation's children. Most crashes involving teen drivers are a result of inexperience and immaturity. AAA supports programs and legislation aimed at reducing the number of teens killed or injured on our highways.

Need More Information? To find out more about AAA's environmental positions and activities, contact your local AAA club.