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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that it is massively increasing fuel efficiency standards for new vehicles in the United States. Under the new rules, all cars manufactured after 2026 will have to get at least 49 miles per gallon.
"The new standards will increase fuel efficiency 8% annually for model years 2024-2025 and 10% annually for model year 2026. They will also increase the estimated fleetwide average by nearly 10 miles per gallon for model year 2026, relative to model year 2021," the agency said in a statement.
The new federal standards will save over 200 billion gallons of gas through 2050.
"Today's rule means that American families will be able to drive further before they have to fill up, saving hundreds of dollars per year," said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. "These improvements will also make our country less vulnerable to global shifts in the price of oil and protect communities by reducing carbon emissions by 2.5 billion metric tons."
The announcement comes as the price of gas has been surging across the country. Over the past year, the average cost of gas has risen from $2.87 a gallon to $4.21, according to the American Automobile Association.
Prices have dropped in recent days following the announcement that the U.S. will release one million barrels of oil a day from the strategic reserves for the next six months.