Some positives from the high gas prices.

[dheeruyadav]

Originally Posted by coolcats

These gas prices aren’t all bad. Yes they bit on my vacation last month. But they’ve caused me to change my lifestyle. I drive slower and less erratically, which increases my safety and reduces my chances of tickets.

We try to plan our trips more efficiently. This means instead of 3 separate trips to the store, we take 1 trip and we save time. When something unforeseen does come up, I try to conserve in other ways. Saturday, I had to run errands around my neighborhood. Instead of driving I used the bike I bought a couple of months ago and got to enjoy the cool morning and get exercise at the same time.

Yesterday, we had a gathering at our house and did end up needing a few things from the store. Instead of driving the mile to the store, I took my bike and backpack and got some exercise. Instead of a 15 minute trip to the store, it took 20 minutes. But maybe this is helping me move beyond the auto-dependency and clock management that rules our culture.

Yes you are right. The high gas/crude prices have taught some good lessons. We are now using the cars more efficiently in a better way. and this should be same with every thing like electricity, food etc.

[donsabi]

The best thing I have noticed with the higher gas prices is the diminished presence of nascar wantabees and boom cars.
We need to gear up for small electric cars, keeping them separate from gas guzzlers and trucks. I love the idea of biking and I think if you are healthy enough that is the way to go. Just don't forget the seniors and disabled who need a car, but let's go electric.
Don

[agreatlife]

Originally Posted by k350

And you needed high fuel prices to do this? Why didn't you do it before?

Does this still even out your bank account? Are you taking into account the higher prices on every other item you purchase? The long term effects on productivity?

Killjoy.

I've found that the roads don't seem to be quite as crowded, so it's more fun to be on the roads now.

[MissingAll4Seasons]

While I can't say I honestly enjoy the high gas prices, I am glad that things finally pinched in an area too painful to ignore... our wallets. I can walk to most places to do my daily stuff and can tolerate being rained on most of the time I'm doing it. I'm hopeless on a bike with my miserable sense of balance, so that one is out (need to find a 10-speed tricycle ). Public transportation in my section of the Seattle Metro is a laughable joke, but I use it when I can (i.e. when I can actually get there from here without 5 transfers, 3 hours, and more fare than I'd spend on gas). The most of my fuel savings comes from combining trips. But then, several of us have been doing this for years... everyone else is just catching up

But the high price of oil isn't just hitting commuters and the transportation industry... think about all the people who depend on heating fuel, their life is going to suck come winter. And what about the fishermen who need to fuel their trawlers to earn their daily dime... guess we're not going to be having some tasty salmon, tuna or crab for dinner very often!

I'm glad that everyone is starting to think about fuel-efficiency in their vehicles and adopting more conservative driving habits, but let's not forget all the other things that are going to skyrocket... and why our system has been set up, and allowed to continue, in order for things to be so affected. There would be no reason for food prices to go up if we weren't wasting 1/5 of our oil transporting and processing food from centralized mega-farms instead of eating from local small farms. There would be no reason for power bills to go up if we weren't still generating most of our electricty burning oil and coal (which BTW also have to be transported and processed at additional cost of fuel). The list goes on....

We've had 30 years to turn this around since the last gas crunch, but we haven't. We chose not to... plain and simple. The minute the gas crunch was over and oil was affordable again, we started using even more than we did before. Evidentally, we refused to learn our lessons like our European brethren have! We shelved alternate fuel and energy. We shelved conservation practices. Now our folly and ignorance is coming back to painfully bite us in our ass (and wallets!). So I guess the good thing is... we can't ignore it anymore, the naysayers can't argue against it anymore, and we'll (hopefully) get off our butts and do something to get ourselves off our oil addiction and wasteful habits. (Yeah, me included!!)