DCRepublican.com

Tue 27 May 2008

Odds are, if you’re a commuter, there is one thing that is more painful these days than any traffic jam - gas prices.

Obviously, you’re not alone when it comes to resenting these extremely high fuel costs. However for most folks, it’s just assumed that there is nothing that they can do to lower these costs.

For some, people have changed their routines to make their drive times as efficient as possible. For others, they have decided to take public transportation to work instead of driving. Then there are those who simply want to avoid the stress and cost altogether and give up driving completely.

It’s not just a small handful of people who are making these various adjustments to save a buck either, just check out these statistics from CNN.com:

The Department of Transportation said Monday it had seen the sharpest monthly drop in driving since it began keeping records. In March, Americans drove 11 billion fewer miles than in March of 2007.

I have no doubt that when the data is released for April and May, the number of miles driven will continue to decline significantly.

While I think it’s great that Americans are driving less, there are many who simply can’t make these adjustments, whether that be due to location, schedule, etc. What about these people? How do they fight the pain at the pump?

The truth is, the American people DO have the ability to lobby their members of Congress to fight more aggressively to reduce the price we pay at the pump.

Just today, a new website was launched serving that very purpose - giving Americans the ability to sign a petition that urges Congress to suspend the federal gas tax, increase American oil production, and expand U.S. refineries.

If you’re tired of high gas prices, and want those you have elected to take action, you should sign this petition.

I’m confident that this petition will take off soon, and hopefully, instead of Congress spending hours questioning oil executives, they will use their power and creativity to pass legislation that eases gas prices immediately.