QOD - Are gas prices affecting you?
We’re all aware of how expensive regular gas is getting. I think we’re at $3.41/gal or so. On a macro economic scale, it is costing us more than just at the pump. Tri-Met will raise its prices. Trucking companies will need to charge more to move goods. Airlines will probably tack on another $10 fuel surcharge. I was talking with my retired parents yesterday and they are re-thinking their summer travel plans based on the cost of fuel (they normally go traveling with a camper.)
So, my question of the day is how is this affecting you? Have you re-thought your summer vacation to the Grand Canyon with the kids? The road trip to the beach of the weekend? Are you more laisses-faire about it and are plugging along? We haven’t made any changes to our plans as we own a diesel and the price for diesel is lower at the moment.
Are gas prices affecting you?
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If it weren’t for all the media attention, I wouldn’t notice rising gas prices at all. But I drive a Prius and only commute 10 miles each way to work. It’s the people who chose to drive gas guzzlers and commute long distances who are hurting. That being said, I think the media cares far more about gas prices than your average American. Must be a slow news cycle.
Nope. Thankfully, everywhere I need to go is within walking distance. My car hasn’t left its parking space in weeks.
Gas consumption has actually gone up during the price spike, gas companies were caught flatfooted and didn’t have the stocks to meet demand which has led to higher spikes.
Since everyone’s bitching about gas prices, but only while they drop another $100 into their Yukon and do nothing to reduce consumption, I say roll on the $4 gallon. Eventually it’ll hurt enough for people to wake up.
I wish we would just go ahead and finish blowing up the entire Middle East so we would not have to carry the burden of paying more of my pocket change at the pump. WE DO NOT PAY ENOUGH FOR GAS!!
It hasn’t changed the way we do things - my car is pretty fuel efficient so we take it most everywhere we go - but we are definitely pleased that neither of us has to drive to Beaverton everyday for work now!
I’m with DAAAAAAVE - it will get over $4 (to never come back down), and that point we should throw on a $1/gallon “sin” tax that can go towards some boondoggle like bullet trains or mass transit hovercrafts. Something needs to change.
Daaaave: On behalf of those of us who have a long commute to the suburbs every Monday - Friday, I say “Tbbbbbbbbt!” Until the day my employer decides to relocate to a spot on a Tri-Met route, those and others like me aren’t going to be able to “wake up.”
I’m definitely trying to drive less - or at least bundle my trips together and/or think through my agenda first so I can handle things in an efficient manner.
Now that the weather is nice I can bike the 6 miles to work. Hubby is full time stay at home dad so yeah, our cars are just sitting around. I would love to see one of them but unfortunately we need both - the Subaru to haul kids and dogs around, the pickup for construction supplies. But I am happy that neither are much in use these days. Wish to god we could get a light truck in diesel that wasn’t 30 years old. I will NOT buy a Fix-Or-Repair-Daily F150. Europe is covered in diesels of all varieties (mini vans! trucks! sedans!) when are we going to wake up in this country?
Hi Brandon,
You seem like a smart guy, it’s called a cost-benefit analysis. Change employers, make a little less but save travel expenses. Buy a more fuel efficient car. Carpool. There are many different options available, including even doing everything exactly the same. Keep that “I support the troops by consuming as much foreign oil as possible” ribbon on your window and make sure the SS Condoleeza Rice stays at full capacity.
http://blogs.southflorida.com/citylink_dansweeney/tanker.jpg
And on a more serious note, I’m no zealot. I’m not anti-car. I’m not demanding we all turn Portland into some bicycle riding Maoist Beijing. If you can use mass transit, do it. If you can carpool, do it. If you have to drive, then for the love of God at least choose a vehicle that wasn’t designed specifcally to show off your conspicuous consumption.
Doesn’t seem like too much to ask.
I’d much rather see a $1/gallon tax on gas than another raise in the cigarette tax. Smokers get picked on too much. Let the people that drive big cars shoulder little of the burden for once.
Hey Daaaaaaave,
Sorry I didn’t fire back a response earlier. You probably won’t see this now.
Actually, it is a lot to ask. The proposals you mention are simple solutions to complex problems. I made the mistake of majoring in English so the only other job I can switch to in this town would be in a coffee shop making a lot less than I do now. A fuel-efficient hybrid, while it might save me a few bucks a month in gas, is going to be just as bad for the environment as the hand-me-down ‘92 Camry I putter to work and back in now. I’m sure you’ve read the reports about what those mercury-based batteries are doing to the environment, what goes into making them and how short their lifespans are. Plus, I’m poor, by median PDX household standards, and can’t afford payments on a $25K+ hybrid.
Do I want to support evil oil companies, evil Condi and other Evil McEvils? Nope but, hey, this is America, everything’s spread out and not all of us get to live an Earth-friendly, bike/walk/bus-to-work cosmopolition lifestyle. Despite Tri-Met’s various awards, it’s still worthless to me. I’m one those, and I think there are many of us, that literally can’t live without our gas-guzzlers. We’re not all well-paid yuppies that can waltz out and buy a hybrid at the drop of a hat.
Brandon, I have to agree with Daaaave on this one. It is all about personal choices. Hey, I have a history degree and during my 20’s, I had to drive to every job I had because those were the jobs I could get. Yet, I began to make choices early on in order to make my life better. My definition of making life better was to have a job close to where I lived. When I lived in NW, I worked downtown. When I got a job out in SE, I lived in SE (only for a short time as the job changed.) Yes, I did a stint in Hillsboro for a few years and hated the drive. Yet, at the time, I did entertain the idea of buying a house out there and moving in order to minimize the commute. At the time, it wasn’t about environment or $$$, it was about my personal time in the damn car. I hated it. Back in ‘97, I made the decision to buy in North and that was the best decision I have made. I walk to the store, walk to restaurants and take MAX to work. I rarely drive. I wish my wife could get a job closer to home and let the car gather dust, but that is a choice we’re making.
I guess in the end, you are the only one who has to decide if you are doing the right thing? What the right thing is? Maybe rethink where you live and work. It is really nice to have a 15 minute commute which I could walk if I wanted to.
It’s definitely all about choice. We sold our car in February. We walk, bike, or take TriMet everywhere we go and rent an economy car when we have to (long trips to see family, etc.).
Now I just look at all the cars, SUVs, and trucks driving around–often with just one person in them–and wonder if those people are just too comfortable or lazy or preoccupied or what. Get out of your car whenever you can—the environment and your body will thank you.
Well, it wasn’t my intent to turn this discussion into a sob story. I was just trying to point out that it’s hard for a lot of us to reduce gas consumption and that the “drive less” plan is too simple a solution to a nasty problem. Someday I hope I’ll be able to find a job and a place close-in on the eastside (yesterday’s commute home from Beaverton to Burlingame took nearly an hour. Bleech). Until that day happens, I’ll be commuting to the ‘burbs in a clunker full of overpriced petrol.