No Fuel Like an Old Fuel

From: Bats
Sent: Thursday, May 03, 2007 10:38 AM
To: wwo@worldwithoutoil.org
Subject: No Fuel Like an Old Fuel

On April 25, 2007, I filled up my Prius tank at Costco. At $2.69/gallon that cost me $27.96. Right now I'll wind up doing this about twice a month.

Inside Costco, I found two different bicycles that listed for about $99. Extending even my hybrid's gasoline usage, with a linear increase to $4.00 per gallon by year end ,I will have spent almost $600. That means that, if I buy a bike for $100 in June, and use that for trips to the local supermarket/drug store/laundry/beauty parlor/blockbuster (Round trip 2 miles), and if that results in a 10% reduction in my Prius usage, then by year end, I will have saved about $50-$60, more than half the cost of the bicycle.

What do these numbers look like for someone with a car that doesn't average 40 mpg? How much greater a savings, not only on the larger gas pump price, but also on the likelihood that routine neighborhood trips will save more than 10% of the overall automobile usage?

Why don't we approach Costco and Sam's Club national management, and any other big box retailers with gas pumps, and suggest that they put up advertising on the gas pump asking all their customers to consider this? Maybe some sort of immediate discount on a bicycle (or accessories - helmet, car rack, etc) upon presentation of a gas ticket. Probably at least a wash to their revenue stream, but a major boost in their community images.

Bats