atlaw4u
04-13-2008, 11:16 AM
Conservation is popular today, but old ways could creep back with lower costs. (http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/041308dnbusgasoline.35393af.html)
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/8_Lane_Traffic_Jam.jpgElizabeth Souder - Dallas Morning News - April 13, 2008
Texans are conserving gasoline.
The people in the land of pickup trucks and long commutes are finding marginal ways to cut back without turning their lives upside down. Fewer trips to the store. Vacations closer to home. Riding the light rail.
"I don't go anywhere anymore. I basically sit here at the house. I'm home-bound," said Ramona Johnson, a 48-year-old Wilmer resident who commutes to Garland and now does all of her shopping on the way home.
"I make good money. It's like, it's not just the gas that's high. Have you seen the price of eggs lately?"
Surprisingly, experts say record high gasoline prices aren't necessarily the reason for conservation here and across the country. It's mostly the weak economy and baby boomers trading in their SUVs for smaller cars as their children leave home.
That means some conservation might become permanent. But once the economy improves, people could return to their old driving habits.
Per capita gasoline consumption in Texas dropped during the winter months compared with last year. In February, as regular gasoline hit $2.93 a gallon on average in Texas, the average Texan used 39.12 gallons, down 0.8 percent.
The trend reversed in March. Gasoline rose to $3.15 a gallon on average in Texas, but Texans still used 2.5 percent more than the prior year. Per capita usage in March hit 38.56 gallons.
"We don't have any evidence that there is a particular price point at which people are going to drastically stop using gasoline," said Laurie Falter, an oil industry economist with the Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration.
"I can't say, 'Oh well, it went up 10 cents, so I'm not going to work anymore or the kids can't go to school,' " she said.
The weaker economy cuts consumer spending on everything – from gasoline to eggs to clothes. So consumers and delivery trucks make fewer trips to stores.
"I used to, would go out to the little suburban cities to look at antiques," said Oak Cliff resident Thelma Washington. Not anymore...http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/041308dnbusgasoline.35393af.html
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/8_Lane_Traffic_Jam.jpgElizabeth Souder - Dallas Morning News - April 13, 2008
Texans are conserving gasoline.
The people in the land of pickup trucks and long commutes are finding marginal ways to cut back without turning their lives upside down. Fewer trips to the store. Vacations closer to home. Riding the light rail.
"I don't go anywhere anymore. I basically sit here at the house. I'm home-bound," said Ramona Johnson, a 48-year-old Wilmer resident who commutes to Garland and now does all of her shopping on the way home.
"I make good money. It's like, it's not just the gas that's high. Have you seen the price of eggs lately?"
Surprisingly, experts say record high gasoline prices aren't necessarily the reason for conservation here and across the country. It's mostly the weak economy and baby boomers trading in their SUVs for smaller cars as their children leave home.
That means some conservation might become permanent. But once the economy improves, people could return to their old driving habits.
Per capita gasoline consumption in Texas dropped during the winter months compared with last year. In February, as regular gasoline hit $2.93 a gallon on average in Texas, the average Texan used 39.12 gallons, down 0.8 percent.
The trend reversed in March. Gasoline rose to $3.15 a gallon on average in Texas, but Texans still used 2.5 percent more than the prior year. Per capita usage in March hit 38.56 gallons.
"We don't have any evidence that there is a particular price point at which people are going to drastically stop using gasoline," said Laurie Falter, an oil industry economist with the Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration.
"I can't say, 'Oh well, it went up 10 cents, so I'm not going to work anymore or the kids can't go to school,' " she said.
The weaker economy cuts consumer spending on everything – from gasoline to eggs to clothes. So consumers and delivery trucks make fewer trips to stores.
"I used to, would go out to the little suburban cities to look at antiques," said Oak Cliff resident Thelma Washington. Not anymore...http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/041308dnbusgasoline.35393af.html