America has neighborhoods that are more fuel-efficient than others. Where are they? Do you live in one? Well, Forbes has the answer, having teamed with the Center for Housing Policy to determine the top ten fuel-efficient neighborhoods in the U.S.  

Brooklyn Heights -- Average fuel expense: $643/mo. B Heights is a hub in close proximity to many things, from economic centers to airports.  It's also relatively close to vacation destinations, all served by public transit.

Koreatown, LA $658/mo. Koreatown is fuel-efficient because it is self-contained; community members don’t need to venture out of the neighborhood to meet their needs.

Fishtown, PA $674/mo. The perfect combo of artists’ colony and student housing, Fishtown is centrally located, helping its residents to cut commutes out of their lives.

Logan Square, Chicago $742/mo. This neighborhood gets props because of the wide variety of mass transit options, including buses, ferries and trains that help keep residents out of cars.

Arlington, VA $747/mo. Again, public transportation helps this community make the grade.  DC's Metro system (which extends into Northern Virginia and Maryland) is so efficient that Washingtonians drive a stunning 13,000 miles less than people in the suburbs just beyond Metro's reach.

The Mission, San Francisco $746/mo. This hip and funky neighborhood is one of my favorites in SF. They have MUNI and BART access (light and commuter rail), buses, and so much cool stuff and local favor you just may not want to stray. Iconic views from Dolores Park.

Jamaica Plain, Boston $728/mo. “JP” as the locals call it, is my own 'hood, so I speak from personal experience on this one.  Connected to four subway stops, it also has a bus line running through its center and then other buses that take passengers outside the area. There are also two "downtowns" that manage to serve most peoples’ food/social/ clothing/eating desires. The tiny grocery and bakery cross the street from my house basically meets all my food needs, a summer farmers' market and a community-supported agriculture org also serves the neighborhood. A local apiarist that makes JP honey, a 100-year-old theatre puts on fabulous productions several times a year, great restaurants keep things spiced up, and a fantastic book/thrift store basically is the reason I own such a ridiculous number of books. There are community centers, schools, bars, public spaces, community gardens and churches. Part of the reason that I love JP is that it is such a distinct, independent little community within Boston’s larger metro region. Plus, it has the most greenspace of anywhere in the city, with good bike paths that lead right to Backbay and the Downtown areas.

Woodward Corridor, Detroit $728/mo. The key to success in this big area is that more than ten percent of its residents use public transit, clearly the winning way to drive down citizens’ transportation costs according to evidence from the Forbes article.

Greenville, Dallas $745/mo. Same story here as in Woodward, with a public transit rate above 10%.

Montrose, Houston $760/mo. Centrally located, and recently, rail. 

There is a clear commonality shared by these neighborhoods:  rail!  They also offer daily necessities within public transit or walking distance, as well as easy access to other bustling parts of town. In the Forbes article, the Center for Housing Policy reports that, " …for every dollar working families save on housing, [they] spend nearly $2.00 on transportation." Therefore moving away from urban centers costs twice as much in transportation as can be saved in housing costs. Because the Forbes model considers $12,000/year or less on transportation to be a bargain, that means that moving from fuel efficient areas could cost residents $25,000 or more in transportation annually.