Question 7 of 12 Smart Cars for Clean Air

Cars take us to school, work, and anywhere else we want to go. We rely on cars to get us to a wide variety of places. The automobile has certainly made our lives easier. But there is also no doubt that cars are slowly killing our planet. It is clearly time to rethink how we use cars in our daily lives.

While cars have given us the convenience of easy travel, the pollution they cause is a serious consequence. The Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, agrees. It says that gas-powered vehicles are the main cause of air pollution in large cities. Gas-powered vehicles include cars, trucks, and bulldozers. Scientists have talked about the dangerous effects of air pollution for decades. One way to stop this pollution is to buy hybrids. Hybrid cars run on both gasoline and electricity.

Normal vehicles run on gasoline, a fossil fuel. This is how they create air pollution. The fossil fuel is burned in the process of running a car. Then, pollutants are released into the air.

Hybrid vehicles currently coexist with gas-powered cars. Hybrids could significantly reduce pollution. These cars do still use gasoline. But they certainly use a lot less of it. Hybrid cars utilize a combination of gasoline and electricity. An electric motor turns the car’s wheels. Gasoline is used to generate the electricity. The car is recharged by plugging it into an electrical outlet.

We can reduce the amount of pollution from the use of gas. We can simply require everyone to drive a hybrid car. The government could make it a precondition that all new car owners buy hybrids. Drivers would not be allowed to buy gas-powered cars. We would also be conserving our fossil fuels for use on other machines.

Hybrid cars have other advantages, too. For example, they still use gasoline. So they can be refueled at any gas station. This way a driver is not left stranded with nowhere to charge the battery. Hybrids are not very different from our familiar gas-powered cars. They just have one major difference: they greatly improve the environment in which we live.

Hybrid cars are the best choice to reduce air pollution around the world. Car manufacturers should be required to stop selling the gas-guzzling cars of yesterday. Instead, they should sell hybrids at reasonable prices. This way, all people will be able to buy them. The future of our planet is at stake!

A small car with a surf board strapped to its hood drives down that runs along a body of water.

Which is true for both gas-powered and hybrid cars?

A.
They run on gasoline only.

B.
They could reduce air pollution.

C.
They can be refueled at any gas station.

D.
They are recharged through an electrical outlet.

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