Have you seen the impact of higher fuel prices in your travel?

[Silvertwinkie]

At this point, summer with work will keep me fairly busy where I won't be able to do much traveling, but if it were to lighten a bit, I could see me limiting the distances of travel. I mean I'm no Warren Buffet.....at $3.25 a gallon x 39 gallons, thats nearly $127.00...add to the fact that when towing at interstate speeds, I get between 10 and 12 mpg. In the best case, I may be able to go about 450 miles on one tank on average.

That means that a trip, 2002 prices would have cost me about $130.00 in fuel alone.

That same trip last October (2006) cost me about $206.00 for fuel.

If prices stay at the current rate alone (around $3.25) this sam trip would cost me about $253.00 for fuel.

This is only for a trip to the northern part of the U.P. of MI from Chicago.

If fuel prices do get even higher, yes, this will have an impact on what I do. Even the most modest of trips would be hard to justify. For example, if fuel for the 87 octane stuff gets as high as $3.75/gallon as some have suggested it might, that trip I spoke of, would then cost me about $292.00. That's more than 2x what I paid nearly 5 years ago.

For now, more local trips are what I'm considering if work even would allow me that luxury.

Slowing down would help get me closer to the 12mpg, mabye even get 13mpg if I went 55mph while towing, but it's not a great situation from any angle, there are just lesser levels of pain. The only thing that would get me back on my long range plans of a trip out west further would be if gas dropped closer to the $2 mark. Heck, if we ever went back below $2/gallon, I'd travel the country.

...but that is just not going to happen now.....is it?!

[cooperhawk]

I really don't like traveling at Interstate speeds and will often take "the road less traveled." While I find it more enjoyable to see "Americana", I never realize any savings in fuel and certainly not in time. Having to slow down for each little burg and deal with stop signs and traffic eats away at both.

When we went to the "55mph" law back in the eighties it almost broke the trucking companies. Now one would say, "who cares". Well, we all do. The increased cost of slower delivery times and the need to add additional trucks to the fleet caused them to pass on all the expenses to the consumers. We paid for it in the end.

What's the answer? Well, I would like to see stable fuel costs year round. I would like to see more refineries built in the US. I would like to see more of our own oil fields opened up for exploration. I would like to see a rapid program to develop different fuels. I would like to see the politicians, environmentalists, fear mongers, and hucksters silenced for once, and for rational individuals to get to work to solve this problem.

Will any of this happen? I doubt it.

[RedSHED]

Originally Posted by anholman

I was on disability 2 years ago and from that retired last year from a job that had a commute of 120 miles a day. My wife suffered a stroke and is now unable to travel her 75 mile a day commute. Although our income is drastically reduced we are still better off. We are planning our Summer and Fall trips without hesitation. Dinner out as often is NOT. So restaurants may feel it but I bet most entertainment is up i.e. movies and sprting events.

Neil and Lynn.

Congratulations on your improved lifestyle. A forced slow-down does not always end in a loss.

Mrs. RedSHED

[Turtle]

Cooperhawk is giving us all a very good lesson on market forces. The best way to allocate limited resources is through price. Supply low,price high. Supply high, price low. Most of us would love to live on the beach. But with a limited amount of beach front property available, the cost is high to cut out the competition for it. Same with gas. Limited supply=higher price=less consumption. See Gen Disarray's response #9 or my #5 response. I like a clean environment but we are being over-regulated and lied to about the truth. The drilling technology today is not what it was in the 1960's. You can credit the environmentalist some for it being cleaner and safer but just common sense and economy of efficiently would have bought about cleaner production. Oil and nuclear power has a smaller footprint and produces more energy and are more reliable than solar or wind farms. If something could be done about the myriad of different gas formulations needed around the country at different times of year the price would stabilize. Until then, I have to take the hint and use less gas as I do have to budget a bit. Jamie

[cooperhawk]

Thank you Jamie. My point is really not to cancel trips yet. It is too soon to know what prices will settle down to, and if you cancel now, you may regret it later this summer. This is the period when the refineries are switching over and prices should go down in a week or two. Not time to panic yet.

I canceled two trips last summer, but not because of fuel prices. It was the heat! Usual summer stuff, not abnormally hot, its just that I'm getting older and don't enjoy it as much.