Driving Shifts in Reverse

ECONOMISTS have long studied the relationship between driving habits and gasoline prices. Low gas prices can bring periods of profligate driving, and a quick jump in prices can cause many vehicles to languish in garages. Until recently, Americans have driven more each year than the previous one, with a few brief exceptions. In 1956, Americans of driving age drove about 4,000 miles a year, on average. Fifty years later, that figure had climbed above 10,000. But the latest recession has caused some big changes. High unemployment meant that tewer people were driving to work, and a slump in consumer spending meant that less freight needed to be moved around the country. As gas prices soared in 2005, the number of miles driven - including commercial and personal• began to fall, and continued to drop after 2008 even as gasoline became cheaper: "People were surprised by the very rapid rise in gas prices, and they changed their driving behavior," said Kenneth A. Small, a transportation economist at the University of California, Irvine. "But my suspicion is that it is temporary. As soon as unemployment gets back to pre-recession levels, we will see Americans doing a lot less driving again."