Final answer:
The main idea of the article is the significant role of transportation in environmental emissions and energy consumption, advocating for lower carbon-emitting fuels, improved fuel efficiency, and enhanced urban planning to mitigate these effects.
Step-by-step explanation:
The article appears to discuss the significant impact of transportation systems on the environment, highlighting that in 2018, 28.2 percent of emissions in the United States were from the consumption of fossil fuels for transportation.
A major portion of this comes from the use of passenger vehicles, suggesting that to mitigate these effects, strategies should include utilizing lower carbon-emitting fuels, improving fuel efficiency, and reducing travel needs through better urban planning and the use of alternative communication and transportation methods.
The aspect of global oil dependency was also touched upon, pointing out that a substantial portion of oil consumption fuels transportation, making it both an economic and energy issue, particularly with the substantial cost of imported oil on a nation's economy.