Report: Hawaii cities tops nation in gas-sipping vehicles

HONOLULU - Hawaii's cities have the highest percentage of fuel efficient vehicles in the nation, according to a study released Thursday.
Motorists in Kapaa on the island of Kauai were more likely to drive fuel-efficient cars than anywhere else in the United States, according to MapInfo Corp.
The Kahului-Wailuku area on Maui was No. 2, followed by Hilo and Honolulu.
MapInfo said with the nation's highest gas prices in Hawaii, it's no surprise that the top four cities were in the Aloha State.
Hawaii drivers paid an average of $3.37 for a gallon of regular unleaded Thursday, about 12 cents higher than the next state, California, and 22 cents higher than the national average, according to AAA's Fuel Gauge Report.
Despite the high cost of gas, island motorists spent a lower share of their income on fuel compared to other cities.
Motorists in Brookhaven, Miss. led in the nation in that category, spending an average of 7.4 percent of their household income of $46,621 on gasoline. No city in Hawaii made the top ten list.
MapInfo's research was based on statistics supplied by R.L. Polk & Co.
The report also ranked Gillette, Wyo. as the city with the highest percentage of gas-guzzling vehicles.
Motorists in Gillette were twice as likely to own sport utility vehicles, trucks and sports cars than anywhere else in the country.
Marshall, Minn. was second, followed by Snyder, Texas and Rock Springs, Wyo.
"With surging gasoline prices continuing to be a topical issue, we thought it would be interesting to conduct research on which parts of the country are being most impacted," said Sebastien Rancourt of MapInfo.
MapInfo makes software enabling companies to use geographical data in their analyses and forecasts.