High gas prices alter driving habits

Record gas prices have put a dent in our driving habits. The growth in miles driven in the USA, a mostly steep climb for 25 years, has flattened in the past year as gas prices spiked, according to a USA TODAY analysis of Federal Highway Administration data.

Driving in summer 2005 through August increased less than 1%
The population and workforce grow by a bit more than 1% annually, meaning more people drive to work, so annual gains of less than that indicate a decrease in miles driven per person.

“There is a plateauing, or an extreme slowing of growth,” says John Maples, research analyst at the Energy Information Administration. The $3-a-gallon mark was a trigger, he says.

Americans are fighting high pump prices by combining a trip to the grocery store with business at the bank or taking a bus to work.

USA Today