The Auto Writer

We all know that our dependency on foreign oil is wreaking havoc on our lives today. What’s particularly sad is that a pair of wake up calls in the 1970s went virtually unheeded and we’re more dependent on international crude than every before.

Congress is trying to place the blame on the oil companies for excessive profiteering while the President wants OPEC to increase production. With the former, Congress isn’t telling the American people the truth — oil companies plow the bulk of their profits back into exploration. A windfall profit tax would be passed on to consumers essentially shifting taxes to where it would hurt the most.

Telling OPEC to do anything is a joke as their interests are not served by increasing production. Moreover, it doesn’t solve the problem at hand: speculators have driven up the price of a barrel of oil and mandates for producing ethanol (biofuels) are taking a similar toll.

While politicians bicker, there are some reasonable and short term solutions consumers can take now to ease their pain at the pump. It doesn’t even involve the cost of selling an older, less fuel efficient vehicle at a loss and buying an overpriced economy car.

If you are in the market for a new car and have the funds to make a purchase, then the timing is right for you. For most other consumers a panic sell off is just that — over reaction to a problem that can cost you thousands of dollars.

Without suggesting long term solutions which don’t help anyone now, the following are some ways that I believe will help consumers today:

Work From Home — Long commutes are destroying our way of life, making it impossible for families to absorb the doubling of fuel costs associated with traveling back and forth to work. Many office workers have laptops and can work anywhere — working from home, at least one day per week, can slash commuting expenses by 20% or more. As someone who has worked from home for more than five years I can attest to the savings that this option has given to me.

Company Sponsored Car Pools — For some businesses, having employees work from home is unpractical — their people still need to be at work every day. Government credits are already in place for businesses to buy vans and allow employees to carpool to work. Ten employees riding in one vehicle can benefit everyone — the company takes an important pressure point off of employees, workers contribute a monthly fee to cover their share of car pool expenses, and the demand on gasoline drops.

Four Day Work Weeks — Some companies can switch from 5-day work days to 4-days allowing employees to work four ten-hour shifts instead of five eight-hour shifts. Many nurses today already work three twelve-hour shifts and quite a few businesses can make the transition without losing production.

Yes, these are short term solutions and nothing more. Over time, consumers will adjust by choosing more fuel efficient vehicles, go with mass transit (where available) while (we hope) our politicians come up with a sensible energy plan that we can all live with.

Expecting our elected officials to take a leadership role now may be a pipe dream. On the other hand, I trust that resourceful Americans will find alternatives that work for them now, solutions that can reduce their weekly fuel costs by 20% or more.