Many find gas prices change their everyday routines

Gas Prices and Driving HabitsEveryone has been watching the price of gas lately. We watch it go up. We watch it drop by two or three cents, and we watch it go up ten cents. It seems like this has been the pattern for months now. Statistics show people are driving less, but there are also fewer accidents occurring.

Recent survey results show that only about 20 percent of people say they are driving the same amounts as they did before gas prices started steadily climbing. Over 37 percent said they were driving less, and 32 percent said they were driving a lot less. Driving habits that changed for other reasons were five percent. Only two percent said they were driving more.

An assistant university professor and researcher just published the results from a study he did on the price of gasoline and accident statistics. He found there was a connection to the number of traffic accidents decreasing, when gas prices were increasing.

Some of the patterns that he noted were a decrease in drunken driving accidents and an immediate (short term) decrease in accidents involving young drivers. On a longer term effect, he noted that accidents involving older drivers and men decreased.

In another survey of small business owners, 64 percent of those surveyed said their revenue had dropped since gas prices have been increasing. Almost one quarter of that 64 percent said they will inevitably have to lay off employees due to the drop in revenue.

As gas prices continue to rise, more and more people are choosing to create entertainment at home. People are renting more movies and games; additionally, surround sound systems and wide screen television sales have slightly increased.

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