Bright Side of Pricey Gas: Less Traffic

June 20, 2008— -- There is a silver lining for some motorists who are fuming as they gas up their roadsters — fewer traffic jams and a quicker rush hour.

Traffic jams are easing all across the country as more drivers leave their cars in park and take the bus, the bike or the commuter train instead.

Across Colorado traffic is down .6 percent and officials in Washington state have seen a 4.4 percent drop from a year ago. Traffic is also down in another 43 states.

"It is the way people see the economic picture," said Jim Ray of the Federal Highway Commission in New York City, where traffic is down. "It has to be tied to the gas prices."

Consumers, distressed by emptying their wallets at the pump, have turned to car pooling and increasingly to public transportation.

In Atlanta, traffic administrators say public transportation ridership in April was up 7 percent from the same time last year.

Atlanta commuter Michael Ross quickly realized the benefits of MARTA, Atlanta's pubic transportation system.

"I've got a big truck. I've got a 2500 GMC and it's costing me a $100 a week in gas, so now I can take the MARTA," Ross said.

Travelers who drive to the airport, however, will find that they are getting squeezed some more. The latest industry move that will likely affect passengers is an agreement between Continental and United Airlines to cooperate.

The deal falls short of a merger, but the two giant airlines — the second and fourth busiest airlines in the country — would share marketing and other costs. The deal would also allow them to dump overlapping routes and get rid of some planes.

The deal is being driven by the airlines' rising fuel costs and expectations that the industry will lose $10 billion this year.

While it may help the two airlines, it's probably not good news for passengers, one expert said.

"We're going to see the consumer have less choice and higher air fares," said Ray Niedl, Airline Analyst of Calyon Securities.

Passengers have already been hit with higher ticket prices, fees to reserve an aisle or window seat, having to pay to check a bag.

"All of the airlines are aggressively looking at how they can get their costs in line," Travelocity editor-at-large Amy Ziff told ABCNews. "There is nothing they are not looking at."