Posted on 11/21/2012 10:12:27 PM PST by ExxonPatrolUs
In the early '80s, miles driven stayed below the previous peak for 39 months.
Currently miles driven has been below the previous peak for 58 months - and still counting.
Gasoline prices were up in September compared to September 2011. In September 2012, gasoline averaged of $3.91 per gallon according to the EIA. Last year, prices in September averaged $3.67 per gallon, so - just looking at gasoline prices - it is no surprise that miles driven decreased year-over-year in September.
Just looking at gasoline prices suggest miles driven will be down again in October - especially with the very high prices in California. Nationally gasoline prices averaged $3.81 in October, up sharply from $3.51 a year ago.
(Excerpt) Read more at calculatedriskblog.com ...
Even if the price of gas were much lower, you would still see a reduction in miles driven simply because 23 million unemployed or underemployed people have no reason to drive as far as those who have to commute to a full-time job.
Does this mean that demand is determined by price, and the slope is negative? Others have tried to convince me otherwise. (Especially noting that mileage per gal has generally increased.)
No reason to drive as far as they did when employed and every reason to drive less since their incomes have likely been reduced drastically. Unemployment by itself does not nearly cover lost income, it’s usually half or less.
I know I once would drive into town just to look around, go into a Lowes or similar to check out the garden center, even drive out to the country to enjoy a nice day or to clear my head if I was worried about something. Don’t do that now, and I’m working.
The only two remaining instances of driving for pleasure in a year for me are an annual vacation beach trip and a fall drive up to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Everything else is coordinated around necessary travel, to and from the office. Family events are the only thing that gets me on the road on weekends anymore.
No GPS tracker in my vehicle... or is there?
I started to commute to work by bicycle. I have also built a couple of trailers that allow me to use it for grocery shopping and general errands I would normally use the car for. I put 4000 miles on my bicycles this year.
My family vehicle is a 15 passenger van and if the whole family has to be someplace thats the ride. We have 9 children so a car is unavoidable.
That van still doesn’t see more than 6 thousand miles a year.
I do have a Jeep for the hunting trips and occasional bad weather commutes, it has only seen about 2 thousand miles at the most this year.
“No GPS tracker in my vehicle... or is there? “
It’s all license plate cameras now (look them up). They have a database pretty much covering where everyone drives and when, once they leave their neighborhood and enter a major street.
...or at least they will, very, very soon.
I don’t do any driving for pleasure anymore. I used to throw the kids in the back of the little SUV and drive to see my brother, who lives 900 miles away. I used to drive to antique shops, or on hikes, or take the kids to historic reenactments, or go out into the country to scout out places to move. No more. Not saying that I use public transportation either—I just don’t do much except work. Life is nowhere near as nice as it used to be. But that’s what happens when commies are in charge.
Oh, and I don’t take those little weekend trips either. The idea of taking a vacation is so ludicrous I can’t tell you. It’s just not happening and I see no hope of having one again.
They can calculate by the amount of gas consumed and the average fleet mpg.
I have relatives in Eastern Europe, and I had the interesting experience of visiting them for prolonged stays when I was young, before the fall of the Iron Curtain. They did not have the freedom to drive around their own country. Every license plate showed the city in which the driver lived, and before they left that city for another one they essentially had to file a flight plan with the government. Can’t have people driving around freely now, can we? With the GPS trackers in our cars, it won’t be long before we’re in the same situation: if we don’t have to actually inform the authorities in advance where we’re going, they’ll certainly know anyway.
Who would have thought, not long ago when the Iron Curtain came down, that we would abdicate our own freedom at the ballot box and exchange our freedoms for their servitude?
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