Could high gas prices actually be a good thing?

After a recent article from All Financial Matters about a lady who drove thirty miles home everyday at lunch just to spend time with her dogs, it dawned on me that maybe the rise in gas prices is not that bad of a thing. I can’t say I ever see myself saying that when the gas pump says $40.00 for a small car and $80.00 for a truck but the cheap price of gas has obviously turned many extremely wasteful people around.

Why exactly would a lady drive thirty miles every single day to see her dogs over lunch for at most an hour? In my opinion, driving what is likely forty minutes for an hour of seeing your dogs each and everyday is an amazing waste. I just cannot believe it was done and those may be the most spoiled dogs in the country.

But the high gas prices are probably stopping similar situations and people throughout the country to be wasteful. Maybe another person is not able to drive twenty five miles at lunch everyday to see their cat. Or another can’t see their hamster over lunch. Here are a few other things that may actually be good coming out of the rise in gas prices:

More people biking/walking to work
People complain that as a society, the majority of Americans are obese. Part of that may be the fact that we rely so heavily on driving and not actually doing any walking or exercising. Why take the stairs when there is a perfectly good elevator right here? The rise in prices may force people to consider exercising to be able to get to work. If you have a bike and the ability to get there in time for work, it may be a serious option that you consider. Unless you live close to your work, walking may be tough to do. But it could be an option some consider to save money.

Less gas guzzlers on the road
When I was young, for whatever crazy reason, I wanted to own a Hummer. That is until I realized how much they cost and how much it now costs to fill them up. With the rise in gas prices, there seems to be less gas guzzlers on the road. People are driving the small car to work instead of the big truck. They are buying less SUVs and more efficient cars. While this does hurt the market for gas guzzlers, it is forcing the country to be more efficient with their gas usage. I hope that people continue to use these measures, no matter if the prices of gas go up or down in the future.

More commuting
While it is not easy to find someone who works in the same area as you or has similar hours that match up, commuting is a great way to save money. As Mrs. Micah mentioned in a previously article regarding her new commuting partner (Click here for the article), it may cost her a few minutes each day to work with their schedule but that is worth it with the cost of gas. Not only is it better for the environment, you may also become friends with someone who lives close to you. Look at the social impact that the soaring cost of gas is causing here!

More time at home
If you are not driving around everywhere because of gas, you may be able to spend more time at home with your family or loved ones. Maybe your company decides that they don’t need you traveling somewhere because they don’t want to pay the hefty prices at the pump. What that could mean is more time at home! Coming from someone who never leaves the house, that is a great thing.

Less traffic
Could the rising price of oil mean less overall traffic? If people decide to do the steps mentioned above, then maybe it could actually limit the amount of traffic there is on the road for those that have to drive. If there is less traffic, then those driving save gas and time because they are not stuck in jams and able to get to their destination quicker.

Better crazy stories
As the final point for this article, without expensive gas, would we have crazy stories like these:

From CBS News: Violence broke out at the gas pumps in Orange County. Police say a La Palma doctor waiting in line to buy gas at the Costco warehouse store in Cypress grabbed a tire iron and confronted a motorist who cut into the line. Sgt. Tom Bruce said the doctor was arrested and booked for investigation of brandishing a deadly weapon in a rude, angry or threatening manner, a misdemeanor. Witnesses told police the doctor was in line at the pumps Monday evening when another vehicle cut in front of him. When the doctor confronted the motorist with a tire iron, the other driver locked himself in his car and called police.

From The Consumerist: Perhaps you thought an old-fashioned siphon was the only way to steal gasoline from a vehicle, but thieves have other ways of accessing your gas tank. Heidi Perkins of Waxahachie, TX. spent $90 filling up her Dodge pickup. Yet, only a few days later her gauge was reading below empty, according to the Star-Telegram. She went to the gas station to refill and noticed the gasoline escaping from a freshly drilled hole in her gas tank.