Zeitgeist: Fuel scarcity makes the bus cool again and the media’s suburbia deathwatch

So today I drove all the way over the Golden Gate bridge to get gas at the supposedly “cheap” gas station and paid $4.02/gallon. And that’s a good deal - closer to my house, gas costs about $0.20/gallon more. So I’m happy to chime in on the collective griping these days about rocketing fuel prices (excuse the cheesy pun).

The media has also picked up on our collective gasping about the high price to feed ourselves and power our lifestyles. Today’s post is a mashup of the latest pieces highlighting the swing in public opinion – with energy costs, land use and sustainability themes swirling throughout.

My Bus Pass Costs Less Than Yours

According to the media, one of the more interesting side effects of high gas prices is a removal of the social stigma associated with car pooling and the use of public transit. Apparently, instead of keeping up with the Jones’, you can now one-up them by cutting ahead of them in the bus line.

Not only is car pooling and public transit better for the environment, but research has shown it boosts employee moral and productivity as a great by-product. Companies such as Microsoft and Google provide ‘in-house’ transit systems and others encourage their employees to skip the commute all together by working from home.

Here’s one of the best employee transit programs that I heard about today: At the Getty Center, employees get a vacation day for every 100 days that they use alternative transporation – that’s three extra vacation days per year!

The Endangered Suburban Strip Mall

Now journalists say rising gas prices are accelerating the decline of ‘suburbia’ as we know it, Suburbs are a direct product of cheap, plentiful oil and land. Neighborhoods were literally built on the outskirts of cities – why not? It was convenient to jump in your car and drive wherever you needed to go. Now it turns out that rising fuel costs and oil shortages are forcing big-box stores and strip malls out of business. An article I read recently, based upon an interview with twelve time author James Howard Kunstler, claims the end of suburbia is near. Kunstler predicts that small towns built around a retail hub (like back in the ‘old’ days) will enjoy revitalization as our society grows noticeably less affluent than it is today.

When the suburbs and giant cities that were built back when fuel was cheap are forced to deal with an extreme fuel shortage, what is going to happen? Our economy is going to suffer as the fuel supply dwindles, and the amount of petrol needed to keep everything running is not available. Kunstler predicts this will affect any system built on a grand scale – schools, government offices, hospitals and farms. It will mean changes in the way we produce food, a change in where we live and how we conduct business as well.

You can find the article about public transportation becoming cool here, and the article about the possible end of suburbia here.

I would love to hear your thoughts.