Recent editorials in the WDN spoke of "peak
oil." My brother, who has been involved with the transportation
industry for over 30 years, has maintained for nearly 10 years now that we
will reach Peak Oil before 2010. There is an organization, The Association
for the Study of Peak Oil & Gas (http://www.peakoil.net/) that discusses
Peak Oil in great detail.
I believe the majority of Americans are in
denial about that inevitable day when the wells run dry. With gasoline
prices nearing $3.00 a gallon a while ago, I continued to see 30% to
60% of cars at my favorite Kwik Trip (on a nice morning, mind you) idling
while the occupants were inside collecting coffee and donuts. I think
people are doing a lot of talking about what the government and everyone
else should do about this crisis but most are not internalizing this
reality and changing their own behaviors.
I am beginning to see initiatives to save
on gasoline use in particular that depend upon us making substantial
changes in our daily schedules (much of which is beyond our individual
control). Neighborhood carpooling, for instance will not succeed as a
start because it asks us all to make major changes in how we schedule our
transportation needs at a time when we are not even ready to let the cabin
of the car cool off or heat up while we get our coffee! We need to work to
motivate small changes first. That is a way to help people truly
acknowledge that the problem exists and to realize that they can do
something about it.
I'm not sure even small changes will be
widely accepted until gasoline prices exceed $5.00 per gallon. At any
rate, I would suggest that we begin with things
like:
1. Shut the engines off when they are not
being used (If no one is in the car or if the driver is sitting off
the road reading a map, chatting on a cellphone, etc.). This is so
obvious I am amazed that everyone does not do it right now. Arguments
about it taking more gasoline to start the car than to let it run were
questionable in the old days. With new engine technologies, such arguments
don't even pass the smell test.The engine on my wife's car shuts down
at stop signs - and she gets great mileage!
Drivers of diesel powered vehicles, too,
can realize significant fuel savings by simply shutting off the engine.
For instance, once a school bus engine has warmed up (Here it needs only
the trip from the Minnesota City School Bus Company garage to the school
to warm up.) it can be shut down while waiting for school to end. Unless
it is very cold outside (The buses are not air conditioned, so this does
not apply when it's warm.) the engines don't have to be running until the
buses are loaded and they are ready to pull out. I am not advocating
shutting down such engines at each stop, but I have observed school buses
sitting at the WSHS transfer point for nearly 30 minutes every afternoon -
with their engines running to "keep them warm" when it was 80 degrees
outside! What will it take to encourage the Minnesota
City School Bus Company to stress conservation of fuel with their
drivers? Such moves have been a struggle for trucking companies but they
are slowly beginning to make progress - and to realize the
savings.
2. Discuss the impact on fuel mileage of
quick acceleration starts. Encourage drivers not to engage in intersection
races. I cannot count the number of times that I have made a left hand
turn into the inner lane of a four lane road (the way I was taught) only
to find the car behind me beginning to rapidly accelerate past me on my
right even before the driver has completely negotiated the turn. That
wastes gasoline! Such aggressive driving habits are not limited to young
hot-shot male drivers, either.
3. Encourage people to plan trips in order
to accommodate as many needs in a single trip as is possible. Get
groceries on the way home. Stress the use of other high technology devices
like cellphones to save on trip time and miles by allowing tasks to be
added "on the fly" (I'm not advocating talking while driving. Pull over to
the side, shut off the engine, and add to that grocery
list.)
If we can sell such simple changes to
people then we can perhaps move to changes that impact lifestyles and
major transportation habits:
1. Begin carpooling by identifying groups
that have similar schedules, work at the same place, and who live on
a common route. It's not necessary to all live in the same area, If I
worked at TRW, for instance, I could pick up TRW employees all along my
route to work as long as we all worked the same shift. They don't all have
to live up by me on the hill.
2. Encourage people to begin to buy smaller
cars. Frankly (and this is just my personal opinion), I don't believe
anyone ever really "needed" an SUV. Minivans are cheaper, get slightly
better mileage and hold more people and cargo than an SUV. Seems if a
driver doesn't "need" a minivan then that driver surely doesn't "need" an
SUV.
3. Encourage people to make EPA mileage
ratings a priority when buying a car and let the dealer know that
mileage is important. Then too, let the losing dealers know that a poor
mileage rating was the reason their car was not the car of choice. If we
are going to let the marketplace determine some of our energy policies
(and it's likely that we will), then it's important to inform that
marketplace at all levels, not just at the consumer
level.
I don't make posts often. It's probably
just as well. I can't seem to make a short one.
-Leslie Hittner
