Why High Gas Prices Haven't Affected Driving Behavior

As gasoline prices settle at $3/gallon, oil consumption continues to climb.

1 minute read

August 8, 2006, 5:00 AM PDT

By Irvin Dawid


"We're not even close to the sacrifice point (before prices force a significant change in consumer behavior)," said petroleum analyst Michael Economides of the University of Houston. "It'll be $10 a gallon before people really start crying uncle."

"Energy costs soak up a smaller piece of the typical American's paycheck than they used to. In 1981, we used 8 percent of household income on energy; today, we use 6 percent.

Compared with many nations' gasoline prices, fuel in the U.S. is dirt cheap. The national average of $3.01 is less than half the price in several European countries.

That's part of the reason why Americans account for only 7 percent of the world's population yet use 22 percent of global energy supplies."

Thanks to Albert G. Melcher via Sierra Club Transportation Forum

Saturday, August 5, 2006 in The Denver Post

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