Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Fuel Prices
Yep, they're high and getting higher. I don't see anything that can really be done about. It's that old supply and demand oddity. The more the demand, the higher the price. And right now, demand is going sky-high and I can only see it getting higher. India is coming out with a $2500 car for its 1.5 billion prospective drivers. Most of whom will be spending most of their time burning gas in traffic jams. The bike jams of Beijing have long since given way to good old western style traffic jams of cars, buses and trucks. And what happens if Africa ever gets it head out of its ass and moves up to the 19th century - even more cars.
To be honest, I'm surprised it's taken so long. While on active duty in the USAF, I used to wonder in the 80s if I'd be able to buy and afford a car in the 90s after I retired. I was really surprised when I bought my car in 1995 and found that gas still appeared to be cheap and plentiful I can remember spending $3 plus in US dollars for a gallon of gas to put into my VW Thing when in England in 1982. So $4 doesn't surprise me too much 25 years later. The only surprise is that it took 25 years.
There's a lot of talk about knocking back the gas tax - wow, big mistake. First, it's not going to amount to that much. Even if it's all the tax instead of just the fed's tax. And you will pay that tax back in other forms. With no maintenance tax money roads will get worse and your car will need more repairs. Freeways will become toll roads. We take a 50 km expressway shortcut in Toronto now that costs us $15 in tolls. With no road tax coming in, where do you think the money is going to come to pay for fixing that crumbling overpass or repairing the pot holes along I-94?
Let's do some real easy stuff first. Fifty-five mph - big savings in gas and safety there. How about a proportional gas guzzler tax for everything getting under 30 mpg? Buses and trains - how about getting them back with useful schedules and destinations? Stop lights - get a little intelligence in them. How many times have you been stopped by a red light at an empty intersection or go down a long road where every light seems change at random times. Set the timing on those things so when you go the speed limit and hit one green, you'll hit all green.
And think about it. Is gas really that expensive? People pay $4 for a cup of coffee and $2 for a bottle of water they could have pulled from a tap. In fact, I just paid $8.99 for 72 ozs. of some Brazilian managed, German style beer (Becks) which works out to $15.98 a gallon.
Labels: driving
