Slowing down will save you gas and money, helping the environment and your pocketbook.

As a vehicle is driven faster more air resistance is created, making the vehicle work harder to overcome that air resistance and using more gasoline as a result.

Roger Clark, a fuel economy engineer for General Motors says “pushing air around actually takes up about 40% of a car’s energy at highway speeds.”

And that air resistance increases exponentially the faster a person drives meaning it rises more steeply from 70 to 80 mph than it does from 50 to 60 mph.

According to CNN Money, Consumer Reports magazine tested this theory with a Toyota Camry and a Mercury Mountaineer. The Camry got 35 mph when driven at 65 mph but only got 30 mph when driven at 75 mph. The Mountaineer got 21 mph when driven at 65 mph, and only 18 mph when driven at 75 mph.

So slow down a little to save gas, money, and possibly a speeding ticket.