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Biking, busing more affordable options as fuel prices keep rising
(Knoxville News-Sentinel, The (TN) (KRT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Jul. 24--When it comes to cars, Powell resident Barry Collins describes himself as a fan of muscle cars. He loves NASCAR and owns a 1989 and a 1997 Ford Thunderbird -- cars with big V-8 supercharged engines.
But $4-a-gallon gas has been putting the brakes on his use of the cars, so he has been looking at some alternatives.
"It got to the point where in April I was trying to baby the cars and I was into hypermiling," he said.
Hypermiling is getting maximum fuel efficiency out of a vehicle through careful maintenance and driving techniques. Hypermilers remove weight from their cars, keep the tires inflated to maximum pressure, drive between 35-55 mph to stay at the most efficient engine speed, avoid braking and use other techniques. The problem is, this is not an enjoyable way to drive, according to Collins.
"I like to drive fast, and there is a reason I bought a V-8 engine car," he said.
So, Collins came up with a compromise.
"I was into cycling before, but I hadn't touched my bike in over a year. I had a $3,000 Cannondale road bike sitting in my garage," he said.
In April, Collins started riding the bike to work and on errands during the week so he could permit himself to enjoy the cars on weekends. Now, he only has to fill up a gas tank about once a month.
Collins is among many in Knoxville and across the country who have been making changes in their transportation because of high fuel prices. Some have switched from cars to bicycles or motor scooters. Some use public transportation. Some have moved closer to work and some telecommute.
Fourth and Gill resident Audrey Lee not only moved from an automobile to a bicycle but changed jobs so she would have a shorter commute.
For six years, Lee, an architect, would drive her Subaru Outback from Fourth and Gill to her job 82 miles away in Crossville. She made this trek three days a week, telecommuting the other two days. But fuel costs were still high.
"I was spending $400 a month on gas, easily," she said. "That's as much as a car payment."
That was also before gas prices really started to climb. Her budget was a factor, but more so at the time was her interest in gaining accreditation with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program, open to architects, engineers and others who practice green building techniques.
"As I studied for that and learned more about the state of the environment, it seemed a little hypocritical for me to be commuting like I was," she said.
Lee began a job search that led her to join Studio Four Design in downtown Knoxville in November. Instead of hours on the highway each day, Lee now has a 10-minute bicycle ride to work and said she was lucky it all worked out before gas crept up to $4 a gallon.
She is much happier with her new arrangement.
"It feels good. I feel more like I am part of the solution now," she said.
Telecommuting was part of Lee's transportation strategy, and for Holston Hills resident Jamie Dahl, it's how he avoids the need to commute altogether. As a network engineer, Dahl is able to do about 98 percent of his work from the home he shares with his wife and their two children.
Dahl does this while working for AT&T and other companies.
"I've been at this job 10 years and I've been working at home the last five years," he said.
But commuting is only part of a family's transportation needs and Dahl said his family, which has two cars, still has seen the weekly budget hit by rising fuel, food and other costs.
"It has affected our budget. It has increased our food budget by about $50 a week and it has increased our gas budget from $20 per car to $40 per car," he said.
Buses are another transportation option, although some users are finding that option threatened as Knox Area Transit (KAT) debates dropping routes and making other service cuts in order to deal with high fuel costs.
Farragut resident Jeremy Chandler said he used to rely on a KAT express bus to get from home to the University of Tennessee, where he is a student, but that is a route KAT might drop. KAT is holding a public meeting at 3 p.m. today in the Large Assembly Room of the City County Building to discuss this and other routes as it seeks to trim expenses and increase revenues.
Many commuters looking for alternate means of transportation are joining programs like Smart Trips, administered by the Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization (TPO). Smart Trips' mission is to reduce the number of people who drive alone. It offers information and support for those who want to carpool, use mass transit, bike, walk or telecommute.
TPO also offers its Knoxville Regional Bicycle Program, which provides bicycle maps of Knox and Blount counties, a bicycle commuting handbook and other services. More information is online at http://smarttrips.knoxtrans.org and www.knoxtrans.org/plans/bikeprog.htm.
Andrew Haddow, a Bearden resident who gets around on his vintage 1979 Puch Maxi II moped, said he initially bought the machine to fix up and use for recreation. He now relies on it for its 60-80 miles per gallon fuel economy. But he said this alternate transportation mode also gives him an alternate way to see the world.
"It's really convenient and also really fun. You have a slower speed so you see more. In a car, you are cruising along and you are basically ignoring all the stuff you pass every day. But on a moped, you have a greater appreciation of what is around you."
To see more of The Knoxville News Sentinel or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.knoxnews.com.
Copyright (c) 2008, The Knoxville News Sentinel, Tenn.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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