Today in gas prices

No change at the Chevron station we're obsessed with at the corner of Colorado and Hill in Pasadena. It will be interesting to see when Friday's big run-up in the cost of a barrel of oil will hit here.

But the national average for a gallon of regular hit a new high of $4.086, according to AAA. California's average is $4.583 -- below the record of $4.61 set on June 19.

And what if gas hits $7 a gallon? The price of numerous products may be out of reach to many Americans and thousands of cars may have to be taken off the road in California, reported Martin Zimmerman in the L.A. Times over the weekend. That's what happens when you build your economy around the private auto.

The New York Times' week in review section had a pile of stories about gas prices, including a neat chart showing all the countries that pay more -- including many where a gallon already costs over $7. The list includes Spain, Greece, Ireland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Denmark, Belgium and the Netherlands. One writer said the great American road trip will disappear. I'm not so sure -- I think people will use their cars for road trips, but be more judicious using them for errands and commuting. That's my plan.

Bottleneck blog guest blogger Arie Verheul posted about how the Netherlands copes with gas that costs about $10 a gallon here a couple of weeks ago. Among their solutions: they invest in mass transit and ride their bikes a lot.

--Steve Hymon

photo: Steve Hymon / LAT

Comments

[Carter]

Oh puh-lease the 76 station at the corner of San Viscente and 26th street at the Brentwood/Santa Monica border is easily the most expensive station in the LA County. Consisently 20-30 cents more per gallon than other stations in the area.

[TrafficBulldog]

Ah if only getting funding for bikes was that simple.

Not a lot of bike companies contibuting to local campaigns like the dealerships do.

And there just aren't as many people employed at bike repair shops.

http://becoolcarpool.com

[Ingrid]

I just wrote a nice long letter to MTA Board of Directors encouraging them to recognize that bicycles are transportation.

I encourage others to do the same and write in. Judging from the last board of directors meeting, MTA needs a pretty solid nudge to recognize this.

email - Customer Relations at MTA
CustomerRelations@metro.net

We have freeways, why not have bikeways?

Live the Dream!

[Tony Fernandez]

I hope this prompts the city council to consider bike and bus lanes on our major streets. They may not be a permanent solution, but they are a lot better than local buses running with the rest of the traffic.