What You Can Do to Push Gas Prices Lower
Experts tell ABC News how cutting back can push pump prices lower.
June 19, 2007 — -- When it comes to high gas prices, individuals can do something to help reduce the pain at the pump.
The choices we make as consumers have a huge effect on the retail price of gasoline, experts say. But to fundamentally change the current situation, millions of drivers must change their habits to burn less fuel.
"Transportation accounts for almost 70 percent of all petroleum used in the U.S., and private [passenger] vehicle travel accounts for 82 percent of all vehicle miles of travel," according to the latest National Household Travel Survey (June 2006).
That means American drivers are responsible for burning about 14 percent of the daily global supply of oil in their tanks or about 11.4 million barrels of crude of the 80 million produced worldwide.
And during the summer, our appetite for fuel increases that much more. "Good weather and vacations cause U.S. summer gasoline demand to average about 5 percent higher than during the rest of the year. If crude oil prices remain unchanged, gasoline prices would typically increase by 10 to 20 cents from January to the summer," according to the Energy Department's primer on gasoline.
This year, when crude prices were in the mid $60 range and driver demand for gasoline maintained record levels, the retail price of gas increased by $0.87 a gallon.
So is there a solution? Oil and economics experts say the solution is actually easy, because the gasoline and crude oil markets act in a very simple way. Only two major factors determine the retail price of gas: supply and demand.
When consumers make choices to be more fuel efficient and reduce daily demand for gasoline, prices should come down.
Experts say a little thought and some action can go a long way, with things like car pooling and combining trips, which offer substantial savings of gas if done consistently over time.
Here are some of their tips:
Sharing a ride. Every day, Americans commute about 166 million miles. If the average family with two workers shared a ride to work, the Department of Transportation estimates that the country would save more than 3 million gallons of gas a day.
Related Stories
ABC News Live