Fuel Consumption in the U.S.
One area of consumption that I
think is particularly interesting to Americans today is the consumption of gas.
With prices nearing four dollars per gallon, people have been forced to
consider more efficient modes of transportation. I researched several news
articles to try to get a better understanding of just how influential gas
prices really are on our society.
One of the
articles I found was in the Washington Post and was entitled “$4 gas reinforces
trend toward lower U.S. fuel consumption.” The article was written in April of
2012 and discusses how Americans have had to cut their gas consumption to
levels that have not been seen in decades. This has, in turn, slowed down the
climb in prices. The article goes on to mention that motor gasoline barrel
supplies were at 8.6 million barrels per day in April of last year. This number
was down 4% from the previous year. The numbers prove that people are becoming
more and more hesitant to spend their hard earned money on gas. This will
certainly have a tremendous impact on all aspects of the economy. If people are
forced to spend substantial amounts of money at the pump, then they will not be
able to afford some of the other luxuries in life. This could in turn be a
vicious cycle on virtually all businesses.
Another
article I read was written in the Los Angeles Times and discusses a bleak
outlook on fuel prices in 2013. The article cites the devaluation of the U.S.
dollar and poor fuel infrastructure as the two main reasons for their claim.
The hurricanes along the East Coast of the U.S. have weakened fuel facilities
and this could become yet another reason for raised fuel prices. The article
projects that prices could reach as high as $4.60 in cities such as Chicago and
New York. This will definitely be something that we will all be watching very
closely. Hopefully their projections are only worse case scenarios.
http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/03/19/us-gas-prices-dip/
Honestly, I don't believe that our consumption of gasoline will drop significantly until we finally run out. Our country runs on petrol, we need gas to commute to work/university/grocery stores/what have you. Sure, the price may become prohibitive, but there are no real alternatives at present. Until we make water powered cars (or something equally unlikely), we're stuck with what we have.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy reading that our fuel consumption is down by a significant percentage. However, most people will not stop driving and will not stop forking out the ludicrous amounts of money it does cost to fill up your tank these days. It seems natural disasters are to blame for our high fuel prices and I had no idea that weather had an effect on our oil supply. But, I agree with Andrew, in regards to the fact that fuel consumption will not stop until it is all dried up. Hopefully, by that time, we will have found a better alternative less damaging to the environment. It seems that 4.60 per gallon of gas is not so unlikely, unless we figure out a way to cheapen the cost or to use less fossil fuels. But, this article did allow for some hope. Hopefully more Americans start living cheaper lives and won't have to use as much gas in the future. That may be asking a bit much, though, right?
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