Higher Gas Prices Save Lives
Saturday July 5, 2008
Higher gas prices mean fewer people driving. Fewer people driving mean fewer car accidents and less air pollution. This amounts to around 2,600 fewer deaths for a 20% increase in gas prices — finally, some good news about gas prices.
Im many ways I agree with this article – it is certainly healthier to walk, ride a bike, and in turn reduce emissions. On the Chicago freeways traffic is noticeably closer to the speed limit than it used to be, drivers cognitive that this saves gas.
However more bike riders means more people not in the safety of the steel cage of a car out on the road. Here in the Chicago area we have seen the amount of bike collisions go up a little it tne past few months. I love my folding bike that I can take on the trains to expand the places I can ride, but I feel much better riding in the city with a rear view mirror, and I have been considering getting a reflective vest to assure I am seen. And a helmet is a must.
Leave the car behind when you can, and for those who can’t please watch out for the rest of us!
Higher gas prices also mean that those who are below the poverty line in rural communities or in cities where public transportation isn’t available and/or convenient must suffer. I know of several people who can no longer afford to go to see their councilor, support groups, charity work that gets them out of their homes, or even to go looking for work. There may be plenty of upsides to high gas prices but it is so easy for those with more than enough to live on to forget those who aren’t as fortunate.