It's always finances that pushes Americans in one direction or another. Coffee prices too high? Buy less,and drink more tea. Housing market dark and gloomy? Put off selling until maybe 2010. Gas prices ridiculously high? Limit driving, start carpooling or take the bus. And hey, no more traffic jams, either.Putting more buses out there, and even adding light rail will help get drivers out of their cars. But the most effective way is for oil companies to reach into their wallets and take them for all they've got. So go ahead Big Oil, gouge away. You and the Detroit Three will just undermine your own spurious agenda.Last year was a record year for bus ridership at King County Metro Transit. It went up 7 percent to about 110 million boardings, beating last year's 103.2 million boardings. And boardings have increased nearly 15 percent since 2004. Prices have increased as well, but such is the small sacrifice to spur innovation.There are likely hundreds of variables at play as for why the rise in ridership. But managers at Metro say that high gas prices and strong employment have historically contributed to ridership gains. Not only will high gas prices push people out of their cars and into buses and other modes of transportation, it will also force car manufacturers to innovate and speed up the delivery of vehicles (public and private) that use alternative, and less harmful, fuels.[[In-content Ad]]
