Interesting read, but their solutions aren't news to most of us, I think.

Do you walk if your errand goes a shorter distance than 2 miles? Ride a bike to do some errands?

I am truly amazed at the price of gasoline. When I first came to the United States of America in 1972, gas was 29 cents per gallon. Right now, here in Tulsa it is $3.09.

I really don't find my self driving less than two years ago, but then I am doing the above alternate ways to get from here to there. I also have been living where walking to get stuff done is possible (in a city/town) since 1998. Prior to that, I was 7 miles out of town, and besides the occasional bike ride to do errands, we drove.

You can also add the fact, that I have been a stay at home mom, and am a house wife, just about my whole married life. I know, that gives me the time to walk instead of drive. Flex time, is the greatest benefit to staying home.

Moni

from everydaycheapskate.com:

How to Beat Your Gas Guzzler into Submission

Over the past couple of years, the weekly poll at DebtProofLiving.com (you do participate, dont you?) has addressed the issue of the high cost of gasoline. As I recall the first poll question was something like, "How high will gasoline need to be for you to make serious changes in your driving habits?" The winning response was $2 a gallon, which at the time appeared unlikely to happen anytime soon.

Well, $2 a gallon came and went, and came back again for a while. And now we think fondly of the good old days when you could fill your gas tank for fewer than forty bucks.

Subsequent polls found that DPLers would get serious at $2.50 a gallon, then $3. And today the price in my neighborhood is nearly $3.50, with no end in sight. They say that weÂll be at $4 by summer.

So are you ready to put that gas guzzler sitting in your driveway on a diet? Good. Finally youÂre ready to get seriousÂand I donÂt mean by going out and buying a new $35,000 hybrid car. Any thinking person will see the fallacy of picking up $400-a-month or more payments to save $100 a month on gas.

Cut out the short trips. The hardest things on your gas mileage are all those short trips you make without even a thought going to the dry cleaners, to the kids school, to the softball field, back to school, to the post office, pizzeria, church, work, GrandmaÂs, music lesson, dance rehearsal! See what I mean? ItÂs the short hops that just kill your gas mileage, so cut it out! Combine your errands. Do the dry cleaners and post office on the way home from work just before you pick up the kids and the pizza. Think twice before jumping into the car to make yet another mindless trip.

Stop being an idiot. Want to know how idiots drive? If they are not accelerating hard, theyÂre braking hard. Frequent lane changing doesnÂt get them there any sooner, but theyÂll sure use a lot more gas. Drive as if thereÂs a raw egg between the floor and the gas pedal. Now drive gently enough to make sure you do not break the egg.

Slow down. Speeding is the American way of life, IÂm convinced. But itÂs also the way to burn through your gas in a big hurry. According to the Department of Energy, for each 5 MPH that you drive over 60 miles per hour, you are basically paying an extra $0.20 per gallon of gas. Slow down and you can keep that twenty cents per gallon in your pocket.

Tip top shape. Routine maintenance (oil changes, air filter cleaning, tires checked for proper inflation) wonÂt just keep you car in great shape; it will lower your gas consumption.

No junk in the trunk. Anything beyond the required safety equipment in your trunk is costing you dearly in lost fuel efficiency. Sure itÂs a convenient place to keep the bags of cement and potting soil, but that stuff is heavy. YouÂre pushing around the equivalent in weight of another person, and thatÂs hard on your carÂs performance. Get rid of the junk and youÂll give your carÂs gas efficiency a much needed break.

Make it your goal this week to add at least two days between your normal gas fill-ups. Then make it three. Can you do more? Work hard at it, and youÂll get your gas guzzler slimmed down in no time at all.