Surefire gas cost-cutter: Drive slower

While gas prices at or near $4 a gallon have persuaded some Bay Area motorists to take public transit, join carpools or curse the oil companies, the high cost of fuel has moved few drivers to practice a proven gas-saver – driving slower.

A Chronicle reporter circumnavigated the bay last week – with the cruise control set at 59 mph – and found little company in the slow lane.


In 111 miles of freeway driving during noncommute hours, he passed just 118 slower-moving vehicles. And on some stretches of freeway – most notably Interstate 80 between the MacArthur Maze in Oakland and Vallejo – almost nobody was driving slower than 60 mph.

“When I’m (driving 55) consciously, I look around and see that it’s just me,” said Jawahar Swaminathan, 31, who drives regularly on Interstate 80 between his home in Richmond and his job in San Francisco. “Even the truck drivers are pulling around me to pass.”

Still, scientists and fuel efficiency experts say that for most cars, driving slower pays.

San Francisco Chronicle