A new survey conducted by market research firm, Synovate has shown that about six in ten people would choose an environmentally-friendlier car over a gas-powered one.

The survey asked the 13,500 respondents to make their decision without thinking about cost. Here are some of the results...

• 40 percent of respondents said green would be their preferred purchase.

• 20 percent said green cars were their dream car.

• More than 70 percent of Chinese respondents said they would buy a green car, compared to 42 percent of Americans.

• At about 40 percent, it was the Chinese who were most likely to take public transportation more often in the next year. Americans were among the least, at 2 percent.

• Germans were most likely to choose green cars over conventional gas-powered cars.

• South Africans and Indians, who typically view cars as status symbols, were least likely to choose a green car.

The survey was conducted three months ago in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Britain, and the U.S.

It should be noted that the survey targeted city-dwellers - where public transportation tends to be more readily available, and traffic congestion tends to be significantly worse than in rural areas.

Jeff