Probably not the best place for this, but I've heard the farmers in S.W. Indiana haven't even planted their corn crop due the heavy rains. Last year was great for sweet corn. Sounds like we'll be lucky to get to buy some before August.

 

I'll have to check with my folks on this, but I don't think we've been able to get anything in the ground at our farm in Pickaway County yet. Today's rain isn't helping.

 

I'm thinking maybe we should have switched to rice farming this year. :|

7 in 10 Americans say high gas prices hurt

 

Updated 22h 5m ago |

By Gary Strauss, USA TODAY

 

As gas prices hover near $4 a gallon,

nearly seven in 10 Americans say the high

cost of fuel is causing financial hardship for

their families, a new USA TODAY/Gallup

Poll finds.

 

Read more at: http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2011-05-16-rising-gas-prices_n.htm#

Cross-posted from the ODOT policy discussion thread....

 

Some unemployed pick jobless benefits over costly commutes

By Randy Tucker, Staff Writer

11:26 PM Monday, May 16, 2011

 

DAYTON  The high cost of going to work has led some displaced Ohio workers to choose not to, instead relying on their weekly unemployment benefits, which can pay more than many of the jobs available to them.

 

“I’ve been looking for a job for more than a year, and I’ve only had two decent offers. They were both in Cincinnati,” said Lannie Scott, a former administrative assistant from Dayton who lost her job when the landscape company she worked for shut down because of the sour economy. “I would have spent most of my paycheck on gas and actually ended up losing money.”

 

Scott is among the fraction of unemployed Ohioans receiving maximum benefits, ranging from $387 a week for singles with no dependents to $470 a week for someone with one or two dependents, and $524 for someone with three or more dependents. One economist estimated that 1 percent of all unemployed Ohioans receive the maximum benefit.

 

 

READ MORE AT:

http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/dayton-news/some-unemployed-pick-jobless-benefits-over-costly-commutes-1162207.html

 

Daily Real Estate News  |  May 18, 2011  |    Share

High Gas Prices Trigger Changes in Buyer Behavior

 

The rise in gas prices is influencing buyer decisions as they shop for a new home, causing more buyers to make short commutes and home offices a top priority, according to a new Coldwell Banker survey of more than 1,000 of its real estate professionals about buyer trends.

 

Seventy-five percent of the real estate professionals surveyed say the spike in gas prices is influencing their clients’ decisions on where to live. What’s more, if gas prices continue to increase, 93 percent predict that even more buyers will choose to live somewhere closer to their work.

 

Gas prices are topping $4 a gallon and higher, and are up about 30 percent over last year, which is starting to put a dent in many Americans’ pocketbook.

 

More real estate professionals also report that the rise in gas prices is prompting more buyers to look for homes that will allow them to work-from-home. Indeed, 77 percent of those surveyed say that more of their buyers are showing an interest in having a home office compared to five years ago.

 

Gas prices also seem to be spiking a renewed interest in urban living. More than half of real estate professionals surveyed say they are seeing more buyers wanting to target homes in urban areas compared to five years ago, citing shorter commute times, being able to walk to more places, and being near public transportation as the most likely reasons for the urban-area migration.

 

More buyers are also choosing homes closer to shops and services due to the increase in gas prices, according to the survey.

 

From an industry news release posted at:

http://www.realtor.org/rmodaily.nsf/pages/News2011051801?OpenDocument

 

 

^--- Well Duh. When it cost more to drive, people drive less.

 

A lot of the media focus is on people's personal lives. How are folks coping with high gasoline prices? They are driving less, combining trips, driving a smaller car, not taking a vacation, working from home, and cutting back on other things. But there are also people losing their jobs, because their customers are cutting back. The guy that doesn't drive to work at all because he got laid off is really saving a lot of gasoline. The truck driver who lost his job because the economy is down is really saving a lot of diesel fuel. The airplane pilot who lost his job is saving gasoline by the tanker full.

^--- Well Duh. When it cost more to drive, people drive less.

 

Gasoline is a very inelastic good.  It takes a large change in price to noticeably change people's behavior.

We are standing on perhaps the biggest threshold since postwar America, when hundreds of thousands of Americans were facing a housing shortage. Then, the auto and oil industries who had been hawking their their visions of American lifestyles since the 1930s were ready to shape the next steps from that threshold.

 

Now is the time when many people are looking for alternatives, including changes in lifestyle. Many of us are urban ambassadors. It up to us to use word of mouth and other tools to help others realize the city isn't something to fear. Just the opposite.

 

Here is the vision I like to share....

 

Gas prices creating tale of two incomes

 

Thursday, May 19, 2011  03:11 AM

By Anne D’Innocenzio

ASSOCIATED PRESS

 

NEW YORK - High gas prices are driving a wider wedge between the wealthy and everybody else.

 

The rich are back to pre-recession splurging: Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom customers are treating themselves to such luxury items as $5,000 Hermes handbags and $700 Jimmy Choo shoes.

 

At Target and Walmart, shoppers are concentrating on groceries and skipping little luxuries. BJ's Wholesale Corp. said yesterday that customers are buying more hamburger and chicken and less steak and buying smaller packs to save.

 

Read more at: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2011/05/19/gas-prices-creating-tale-of-two-incomes.html?sid=101

 

Gasoline is a very inelastic good.  It takes a large change in price to noticeably change people's behavior.

 

Yes, in the short term. People choose what kind of car to drive, where to work, where to live, where to send their kids to school, where to go on vacation, and - heres a biggie - how many children to have,  based on gasoline prices. Most of these are long-term decisions that cannot be changed easily. If gasoline prices changed to $10 a gallon tomorrow, it wouldn't make that much difference in commuting patterns this week, because people will dip into their savings or draw down the reserves - including by driving with gasoline already in the gas tank - in the short term.

 

In the long term, gasoline prices make a huge difference. If you can't afford to drive to your job, then something's got to change.

 

 

 

Gasoline is a very inelastic good.  It takes a large change in price to noticeably change people's behavior.

... and - heres a biggie - how many children to have ...

 

I immediately thought of my neice and her husband and their friends in upscale suburbia, all staunch adherents of the Quiverfull movement, who drive large SUVs and vans to transport their burgeoning broods of home-schooled future Christian activists and missionaries to events and activities. Inexpensive fuel made their lifestyles more attractive, perhaps even attainable. Most of their breadwinners win the bread in banking, finance, and real estate development, all fields that sooner or later will feel the pinch as motor fuel prices inevitably climb.

I'm not sure how elastic families that are willing to go well beyond 3 are in terms of gas. However, the real effect comes in the decision to go from 2 to 3 and even more so to cross pass three. With two or even three, a basic family sedan that gets 30+ mpg is attainable (or even a small SUV in the mid-20s), but once you need a third row, you are looking at large SUV or minivan and then you are hard-pressed to get above the low 20s (though I guess some of the minivans get a little higher).

 

I immediately thought of my neice and her husband and their friends in upscale suburbia, all staunch adherents of the Quiverfull movement, who drive large SUVs and vans to transport their burgeoning broods of home-schooled future Christian activists and missionaries to events and activities. Inexpensive fuel made their lifestyles more attractive, perhaps even attainable. Most of their breadwinners win the bread in banking, finance, and real estate development, all fields that sooner or later will feel the pinch as motor fuel prices inevitably climb.

 

You're awesome, Rob. I love that.

http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/coldwell-banker-real-estate-survey-finds-spike-gas-prices-is-impacting-where-home-buyers-1515949.htm

 

 

May 18, 2011 05:00 ET

Coldwell Banker Real Estate Survey Finds Spike in Gas Prices Is Impacting Where Home Buyers Choose to Live

Rising Gas Prices Drive Desire for Shorter Commutes and Home Offices

 

PARSIPPANY, NJ--(Marketwire - May 18, 2011) - The high cost of gasoline is not just emptying wallets; it is also impacting where consumers choose to buy a home. According to a new Coldwell Banker survey among its network of real estate professionals, 75 percent said that the recent spike in gas prices has influenced their clients' decisions on where to live, and 93 percent said if gas prices continue to rise, more home buyers will choose to live somewhere that allows for a closer commute to their work.

 

The Desire to Be Close to Work, or Work from Home

 

Out of those who said gas prices affect where consumers want to live, being closer to work was the leading consideration.

 

+ Drive time and racking up miles en-route to the office caused 89 percent to say buyers look for homes closer to work. Forty-five (45) percent are seeing buyers choose homes closer to shops and services as a result of increasing gas prices.*

 

Some buyers are skipping the commute altogether.

 

+ More than three quarters of the real estate professionals surveyed (77 percent) said more buyers today are interested in having a home office compared to five years ago, and 68 percent of those respondents said that they believe the high cost of gas contributes to this new work from home trend.

 

+ Currently, there are more than 25,000 homes available on coldwellbanker.com that include "office" as part of the listing description.

 

"The decision to buy a home has always been tailored around the personal, multi-faceted lifestyle needs of each buyer," said Jim Gillespie, CEO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate. "Today, rising fuel costs and a person's decision to commute or perhaps work remotely are additional factors of the decision home buyers must consider."

 

An Increased Interest in Urban Living

 

One trend continuing to rise in popularity, partly because of the gas price phenomenon, is the interest in urban living.

 

+ Fifty-six (56) percent of the real estate professionals surveyed said that they are seeing more home buyers interested in urban living compared to five years ago.

+ Of the subset that recognized this trend, 93 percent strongly agreed or agreed that one reason is an increased interest in shorter commutes.

+ Eighty-one (81) percent of these respondents also strongly agreed or agreed that the desire to reduce spending on gas is a factor.

 

According to those who have seen an increased interest in urban living, other reasons behind this trend are:

 

+ Having everything at your fingertips (91 percent strongly agreed or agreed)

+ Being able to walk to places (76 percent strongly agreed or agreed)

+ Being near public transportation (52 percent strongly agreed or agreed)

 

Methodology: Coldwell Banker Real Estate conducted an online survey among 1,188 Coldwell Banker real estate professionals across the United States about the impact of gas prices on home buying decisions and trends surrounding urban living. The survey was fielded between April 28, 2011 and May 3, 2011.

 

*Some answer percentages in the above may not total 100 percent, if only the most popular responses are listed. In other cases, respondents had the option to check all that apply, which may mean that percentages total more than 100 percent.

 

About Coldwell Banker®

Since 1906, the Coldwell Banker® organization has been a premier provider of full-service residential and commercial real estate. Coldwell Banker is the oldest national real estate brand in the United States and today has a network of more than 87,000 sales agents working in approximately 3,200 offices in 49 countries and territories. The Coldwell Banker brand is known for creating innovative consumer services as recently seen by being the first national real estate brand to augment its web site www.coldwellbanker.com for smart phones, the first to create a iPhone application and the first to fully harness the power of video in real estate listings, news and information through its Coldwell Banker On Location(SM) YouTube channel. The Coldwell Banker system is a leader in specialty markets such as resort, new homes and luxury properties through its Coldwell Banker Previews International® marketing program. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each office is independently owned and operated.

More feel pinch of gas prices

41% of poll respondents say fuel costs causing their families serious financial hardship

Monday, May 23, 2011  03:07 AM

By Jennifer C. Kerr and Jennifer Agiesta

 

ASSOCIATED PRESS

 

WASHINGTON - As $4 a gallon gasoline becomes commonplace, drivers have made tough choices: scaling back vacations, driving less or ditching the car. And a new Associated Press-GfK poll shows that the impact of sustained high prices is spreading among senior citizens and higher-income Americans.

 

According to the poll, the share of all Americans who say that increases in the price of gasoline will cause serious financial hardship for them or their families in the next six months now tops 4 in 10.

 

Overall, 71 percent said rising prices will cause some hardship for them and their families, including 41percent who called it a "serious" hardship. Just 29 percent said that rising prices are not causing a negative impact on their finances.

Read more at: http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2011/05/23/more-feel-pinch-of-gas-prices.html?sid=101

Gas prices have really dropped.  They are around 3.76 / 3.77 per gallon now.  This is a big back-off from the $4/gal and up that was earlier.  And this over a holiday weekend.    Though this is still $1/gal more than last year.

 

Wonder whats up?  Maybe this up/down/up/down, but then stablizing for awhile at a higher price than another up/down cycle.  I guess this is how we will see the price creep up.  Unprecdented highs, than a back-ing off to a lower price, but still higher than before?

 

 

Some of it can be as simple as power outages at aging refineries/power grids, bad weather in various parts of the world, changes in consumption, etc.

 

But they are due to go back up if the wholesale prices are any indication.....

 

 

Europe Product Swaps-Gasoline edges higher

Tue May 31, 2011 4:31pm GMT

 

LONDON, May 31 (Reuters) - Gasoline prices rose over the

week as attention focused on the U.S. driving season which began

over the weekend.

 

The market was volatile over the week and briefly jumped as

Texas was hit by another city-wide power outage, but sentiment

remained lacklustre on worries about high prices cutting into

U.S. consumption.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFLDE74U20H20110531

 

Prices in Dayton have dropped to below 3:40/gallon (at one station).  Most are still in the low 3:40s. 

 

Which is interesting in light of the summer driving season being where we'd expect rises in prices?

 

$3.32 here. They say that there was a lot of demand destruction, but are we at a point where the oil-delivery infrastructure in the U.S. is not compromised? I heard something about some trouble near Chicago last week, but perhaps everything else is running smooth for now.

Thought some might be interested in the following chart. It shows the retail deliveries for gas in the US and how its at its lowest level in the last 30 years.

 

http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=A103600001&f=M

Interesting chart!

 

  It seems that many ads on TV from an automobile manufacturer mentions gas mileage, even for luxery cars. Also, the emphasis on power seems to be dropping.

Cars mostly have plenty of power anyway. It used to be that a 19 second quarter mile was slow. Nowadays anything slower than a 15.5 is unusual.

Down to 3.25/gal!  Time for some road-trips!

Did you know that average transportation costs per household are about $278 less in the City of Cleveland (more densely developed, more efficient transportation choices, and more destinations are close by) than in the exurban areas of Northeast Ohio where you have to drive everywhere and farther to do almost anything?

 

The Chicago-based Center for Neighborhood Technology developed the transportation cost index for Northeast Ohio, which is available at:

 

http://abogo.cnt.org/2011/07/cleveland-gas-prices-forest-city-transportation-costs/

Gas is going up again!

Scope out this chart that ranks cities on their fuel use. Not a whole lot of surprises except that Cincinnati is ranked 15th (a Gulper) whereas Columbus is a Sipper at #34. I didn't think that they would be so far apart and I thought Cincy would actually use a little less than Cbus. Not true! A reminder that hills and curves really do wreck your car's fuel economy, this. Cleveland was not ranked for some reason.

 

http://www.mint.com/blog/trends/mint-data-shows-where-the-gas-money-goes/?display=wide

Gasoline: The new big U.S. export

By Steve Hargreaves @CNNMoney December 5, 2011: 5:38 AM ET

 

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The United States is awash in gasoline. So much so, in fact, that the country is exporting a record amount of it.

 

The country exported 430,000 more barrels of gasoline a day than it imported in September, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

 

That is about twice the amount at the start of the year, and experts and industry insiders say the trend is here to stay.

 

The United States began exporting gas in late 2008. For decades prior, starting in 1960, the country used all the gas it produced here plus had to import gas from places Europe.

 

Read more at: http://money.cnn.com/2011/12/05/news/economy/gasoline_export/index.htm?hpt=hp_t2

I'm actually not too surprised to learn that.  Advanced economies often profit by importing raw materials (e.g., crude) and exporting finished goods (e.g., refined petroleum products), which often command both higher prices and higher margins.  I wouldn't be surprised to learn that we're a net exporter of a solid variety of other refined petroleum products as well.  In addition, it's been years now since we've seen a serious Atlantic hurricane (Category 3+), which affects our export capacity because of how much of our refining infrastructure (and shipping infrastructure, for that matter) is in the Gulf region.

East Coast refinery shutdowns could push up gasoline prices here

Published: Tuesday, January 10, 2012, 8:00 PM    Updated: Tuesday, January 10, 2012, 8:13 PM

By John Funk, The Plain Dealer The Plain Dealer

 

 

Refinery shutdowns on the East Coast this year could force you to pay more for gasoline, a leading energy official says.

 

That's because refineries in Ohio and throughout the Midwest probably will pay more for crude oil and send gasoline east, where shortages will command a higher price.

 

"Your region's refineries might become a source of products to the western part of the East," said Howard Gruenspecht, acting administrator of the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

 

Read more at: http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2012/01/line_east_coast_refinery_shutd.html

They're really going to idle refineries producing half of the Northeast's gasoline, rather than updating them?  Wow.  That's mindboggling to me.  You'd think that they'd be rolling in enough money right now to pay to get their equipment up to date, especially in such critical locations.  It's been years now since we've had a major Atlantic hurricane capable of seriously damaging Gulf refineries and distribution infrastructure, and the winter has been pretty mild as well, so I thought we were in for some good times on the oil-infrastructure front.

They're really going to idle refineries producing half of the Northeast's gasoline, rather than updating them? Wow.  That's mindboggling to me.

 

LOL, oil's not easy to work with, Gramarye. The infrastructure, since there's so much of it, is inherently fragile. Oil and oil-based products must simply be too cheap for them to mess with it right now. They get to make their own business decisions in order to stay profitable.

Gas is headed to $4 a gallon

Experts cite normal production issues, global worries

By  Mark Williams

The Columbus Dispatch Thursday January 12, 2012 7:20 AM

 

Get ready for $4-per-gallon gasoline, expected by the time the weather warms up.

 

Blame the usual suspects for what should be a steady rise in prices into the spring: the high price of oil; worries about the Middle East; refinery issues; more-expensive blends of gasoline sold in the summer; and the normal rise in gasoline prices during the first half of the year.

 

The good news is that after prices peak this April and May in a range of $3.75 to $4.25 per gallon, prices should decline during the back half of the year and could even fall below $3 a gallon, said Tom Kloza, editor and publisher for the Oil Price Information Service.

 

Read more at: http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/business/2012/01/12/gas-is-headed-to-4-a-gallon.html

Refineries on the East Coast close, and the oil industry wants the Keystone XL pipe to transport oil destined for Illinois to gasoline refineries in New Orleans for ultimate export.  The Midwest loses again.

They're really going to idle refineries producing half of the Northeast's gasoline, rather than updating them? Wow.  That's mindboggling to me.

 

LOL, oil's not easy to work with, Gramarye. The infrastructure, since there's so much of it, is inherently fragile. Oil and oil-based products must simply be too cheap for them to mess with it right now. They get to make their own business decisions in order to stay profitable.

 

Oh, I'm aware oil is not easy to work with.  However, companies with the resources of our petroleum giants should be able to do it anyway, particularly given the market need for their products.  Sunoco and ConocoPhillips are not your little local mom and pop shop or local neighborhood startup.

This gem was tweeted by Jason Segedy, director of the Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study, the metro planning organization for Greater Akron......

 

"Why do Americans view cheap gasoline as a God-given right? If gas prices kept pace with tuition costs there would be blood in the streets."

Airline Shares Fall as Oil Prices Rise

NEW YORK February 22, 2012 (AP)

 

Airlines stocks fell on Tuesday as fuel prices rose, suggesting that investors may be nervous that recent fare increases may not be enough.

 

Shares of some of the big airlines fell 10 percent or more, although they recovered slightly on Tuesday afternoon.

 

Jet fuel is the single biggest expense for most airlines. As of last week it had risen 12 percent over the past year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Oil prices rose further on Tuesday, up $2.65 to $106.25 per barrel in New York. That's its highest price since May 4.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://abcnews.go.com/Travel/wireStory/airline-shares-fall-oil-prices-rise-15761105#.T0emb4d5GSo

Up 30 cents overnight at Kroger across the street.

Iran accounts for less than 2% of total oil reserves. How in the world does that effect gas prices this much?????

Iran accounts for less than 2% of total oil reserves. How in the world does that effect gas prices this much?????

 

My bet is speculators. Markets don't seem to be governed by real events anymore. At least not in the short-to-medium term.

The global oil market is also very tight. Even though oil demand is down in the U.S., it's up in Asia and the Middle East. The latter situation is especially intriguing, as there is less spare production capacity in the Middle East and fewer oil being exported. Instead, the high price of oil is boosting their economies and causing oil-exporting nations to consume more of their own oil, leaving less for export which makes the oil even more expensive.

The global oil market is also very tight. Even though oil demand is down in the U.S., it's up in Asia and the Middle East. The latter situation is especially intriguing, as there is less spare production capacity in the Middle East and fewer oil being exported. Instead, the high price of oil is boosting their economies and causing oil-exporting nations to consume more of their own oil, leaving less for export which makes the oil even more expensive.

 

Exactly.  Oil companies in America are exporting oil to other countries.  It's among the highest US exports, if not the highest.  There's more than enough supply for US oil companies to fuel the US; it's just the US oil companies are not only fueling the US, but India, China, etc.

I disagree.  American oil companies may be shipping domestic oil and gasoline from ports where it is convenient to load the oil and sell it in foreign markets where the profits are high.  However, the US is still importing half of the oil that it uses.  Our oil comes in on pipeline from Alberta, Canada to Illinois and Missouri.  Our oil also comes from Mexico.

Exactly.  Oil companies in America are exporting oil to other countries.  It's among the highest US exports, if not the highest.  There's more than enough supply for US oil companies to fuel the US; it's just the US oil companies are not only fueling the US, but India, China, etc.

 

Sorry to burst your bubble, but depending on the source, only 10-20 percent of the world's oil and gas reserves are produced by US, European and other private, multinational oil companies. The other 80-90 percent is produced by government-owned oil companies. In fact, the "New Seven Sisters" -- Saudi Arabia's Aramco, Russia's Gazprom, CNPC of China, NIOC of Iran, Venezuela's PDVSA, Brazil's Petrobras and Petronas of Malaysia -- produce one-third of the world's oil, and two to three times as much oil than the surviving members of the "Old Seven Sisters" -- Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell, BP, Chevron" -- combined. Add in the only other supermajors, Total SA and ConocoPhillips, and this group of six still doesn't come to close to half of the production volumes of the seven national government-owned companies I listed above. And that doesn't count the hundreds of smaller nationally owned companies around the world. Those companies will do what is in the best interest of their nations and/or the governments running those nations. If it means playing keep-away from the U.S./Europe to keep oil prices high so that it enriches their national treasuries, then too bad for America and Europe.

 

If anything, US and European oil companies are getting locked out of nearly all of the world's remaining, most prolific oil fields.

Do not confuse gasoline, which is a finished product, and petroleum, which is a raw material. According to the article, United States exports of gasoline are up. The article didn't say anything about petroleum.

 

Sure, the United States is an oil exporter. Some oil produced in Alaska goes to Japan, for example. But the United States imports quite a bit more than it exports. The United States has been a net importer of oil since about 1940.

 

In round numbers, the United States produces about 9 million barrels of oil per day, but the United States consumes 20 million barrels of oil per day.

If we keep shutting down old refineries, I doubt we'll be exporting much more gas much longer......

Gas sends Angelenos flocking to mass transit

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Robert Holguin

 

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Whether he's riding the subway or taking the bus, Christopher Jones says public transportation is his option these days, due largely to the dramatic spike in gas prices.

 

Jones said he makes his way through Los Angeles' mass transit system on a daily basis, and says he's noticed a pronounced increase in ridership.

 

"It's always been convenient for me and economical for me, especially when I'm on a low budget as it is," the 50-year-old Compton resident said. "When I first started riding there wasn't nearly this many people as I see now."

 

Read more and see video at: http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/consumer&id=8564382

I wish Christopher Jones the best of luck; I've never been to L.A., but the things I hear about the mass transit system there are less than flattering.

My girlfriend and I just calculated how much we spent monthly on gas: $40-$50 (1 car). As the price per gallon increase, we continue to limit how much we drive. She drives to work only and then to haircut once a month, groceries, and me to the gym. If it gets to the point where its over $70, we're getting a Metro pass and we'll cut back even more, driving only to areas not accessible by bus, and to get groceries.

Actually, $40-$50 isn't that much for a gas budget for a month.  Many of the people at my office probably spend four or more times that.  That's a little more than one tank refill per month, most likely.

I wish Christopher Jones the best of luck; I've never been to L.A., but the things I hear about the mass transit system there are less than flattering.

 

You may be surprised at the extent of their system, especially on the rail side. It is pretty extensive and getting bigger -- rapidly. In late-2008, voters passed Measure R, which provides more than $1 billion per year over 30 years for transit development....

 

At the time, Measure R was expected to generate $40 billion over thirty years; as a result of the recession the Measure is now expected to only generate $36 billion. Here are how the Measure R projects break down:

 

Transit Capital (new light rail, commuter rail, and bus rapid transit projects) 39.4%

Highway Capital (new carpool lanes, an extension of I-710, and other projects) 19.7%

Transit Operations (including a discount Metro fare freeze until 2013) 24.6%

Local Return (for cities to spend on anything transportation related) 14.8%

Administration of Measure R 1.5%

 

This is their rail transit and busway system in place, what is under construction and what is planned under Measure R.....

 

 

 

Plus they also have an extensive regional commuter rail system throughout the Southland.....