Editorial: A dent where it counts

Monday, Aug. 7, 2006 | 6:59 a.m.

With Ford and General Motors facing losses due, in part, to tanking truck and SUV sales, it seems that rising gas prices are changing Americans' views on driving.

At least, they are changing motorists' views on what they are driving. But it's uncertain as to whether Americans experiencing pain at the gas pump are changing how they drive.

People are passing up trucks and sport-utility vehicles and opting instead for smaller, more fuel-efficient cars, Newsweek reports.

Ford and GM are responding with research into better aerodynamics and engines that are more fuel-efficient. Experts told Newsweek that the biggest gains can be made in conventional vehicles rather than higher-priced hybrids.

But just as a better diet pill isn't the sole answer to America's obesity problem, better fuel-efficiency technologies will not solve the problems created by the country's voracious appetite for oil.

More of us should eat less, and more of us need to drive less.

Although some Americans have few choices when it comes to driving less often, many of us do have choices.

If transit, bicycling or walking aren't options for getting to work, maybe we can use them for heading to the movies, church or the store. Children go to school in carpools, why can't more parents use them?

By sharing rides, combining errands or changing our methods of travel - even once or twice a month - we can make a dent in fuel consumption that engines alone can't.