In a world where gasoline costs $7 a gallon, people are going to be much more aware of when they use their vehicles. People will be less likely to buy heavy, inefficient vehicles unless they really have a lot of money to spend on fuel. Many people are already rethinking their choice of vehicles. SUV sales are down, and small economy cars are selling well. More people will be using public transportation. More people will be using motorcycles and scooters. More people will be exploring alternative fuels for vehicles like biodesiel, ethanol and electricity.
The other day I was talking with a man who owned a Ford 350 crew cab Diesel pickup truck. He said that he went to New Hampshire last weekend. It is 200 miles from his house to his cabin. It cost him $100 in gas to drive up and another $100 to drive back. $200 for a weekend. He thought that was a lot of money. This same weekend, I drove my car 1,000 miles to western New York, and spent about $120 in gas. For me, gas was about $4 a gallon, more than it is around home. Even for me with a car that is relatively good on gas, it seemed like a lot of money.