# Have you noticed fewer people driving where you are? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 17, 2008, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876 "2008-07-17T21:49:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/1 "2008-07-17T21:49:37Z")
I was thinking the other day as I was stuck in traffic that one of the few benefits of gas selling at more than $4/gallon was that there should be, at least in theory, fewer cars on the road. That doesn’t seem to be the case at least in the suburbs north and west of Boston. Traffic is at least as heavy as normal, considering it is summer it seems heavier than it has any right to be. Of course given where they live, work, and or shop many people still have to drive even with the relatively high cost of gasoline. You would think though with people cutting out unnecessary trips that there would be some noticeable decrease in the number of cars on the road. How about it? Does the number of cars on the road in your area seem higher, lower, or the same as ever? ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/2 "2008-07-17T22:13:48Z")
I’ve noticed a LOT more motorcycles and scooters on the road. No more cyclists, though. And it’s not a very walk-friendly city. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/3 "2008-07-17T22:27:35Z")
I haven’t really paid attention to cars, but there are a lot more people taking public transportation out here. I take a commuter express bus every day and our ridership has close to doubled in the last couple of months. ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/4 "2008-07-17T22:29:54Z")
Most definitely yes. There are Much less drivers on the road. And like someone said above a lot more scooters and motorcycles. I even say a gold cart at the grocery store the other day! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/5 "2008-07-17T22:33:19Z")
I’ve been seeing fewer of the more massive, expensive SUVs-- Lincoln Navigators, Cadillac Escalades, Hummers, etc. People who could afford those types of vehicles seem to be the same types of people who could afford the financial hit upon trade-in for a more economical vehicle, as opposed to lower-income folks who may be stuck with a mid-range SUV that they can’t afford to trade. I’ve also seen more scooters on the road, though they were already becoming more common several years ago as a legal means around license suspension. Overall, I’ve not noticed a reduction in vehicles, just a shift away from the more ostentatious gas-guzzlers. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/6 "2008-07-17T22:33:33Z")
Yes. Public transport patronage is up 10% and fuel sales are down 7% in volume. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2008, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/7 "2008-07-17T22:36:32Z")
I’ve been in more traffic jams in the last month than ever before, all on the same routes at the same times. So no, I don’t see a reduction, at least in the greater Portland, Oregon area. (Nor more scooters.) ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/8 "2008-07-18T03:58:56Z")
I’ve noticed a lot more motorcycles and scooters and bicycles, and a lot more people on motorcycles and scooters and bicycles who don’t really seem to know how to ride them. ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/9 "2008-07-18T04:13:21Z")
I don’t know if there’s less road traffic, but the number of people taking public transportation appears to be fast outstripping the MBTA’s ability to provide it. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/10 "2008-07-18T04:21:39Z")
A lot of people were griping about voting in the Phoenix metro light rail system back in…2006, I guess it must have been. I’m pretty sure a lot of folks are glad it’s getting near completion now instead of just getting started. I’m also seeing a lot of motorcycles on the road, and a ton of scooters as I pass the university campus to and from work. Not much reduction in overall traffic, though. (And I do know how to ride my new motorcycle, thank you! I’m just, uh, still new at it.) ---
**Author:** ![threemae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f9b8f/32.png) [@threemae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/threemae)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/11 "2008-07-18T05:25:48Z")
[QUOTE=Phlosphr] I even say a gold cart at the grocery store the other day! 🙂 [/QUOTE] Now that hardly strikes me as an effective means of saving money in this era of expensive commodities. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/12 "2008-07-18T07:49:18Z")
I’ve noticed no difference in the amount of cars - or other vehicles - on the road. People need to get from A to B and motor vehicles are usually the best way to do it. ---
**Author:** ![zenith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zenith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zenith)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/13 "2008-07-18T08:01:14Z")
Working the 11-7 shift, I’m noticing fewer cars on the road @ approx. 7:30AM–the beginning of the normal world’s morning commute. I also notice more people per car at this time of day. However, @ 10-10:30 PM, there are just as many speeding, jug-headed idiots out as ever-especially on weekends. And a lot of those driving badly do it in SUVs and those sissy 4-door pickups with useless 4’ cargo boxes. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/14 "2008-07-18T10:02:54Z")
(DC area) I’ve noticed a few more scooters and bicycles and the Metro’s more crowded these days (more trains, pretty please, Metro?), but no fewer cars really, though I have noticed people driving slower. I seem to be getting stuck behind more numbnutted hypermilers in the left lane. Time to install that RPG in my grill! ETA: I’m wondering when we’re going to hear about the uptick in scooter/bicycle accidents due to the greater number of riders, especially less experienced ones, out there. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/15 "2008-07-18T10:16:30Z")
Nope. ---
**Author:** ![ASAKMOTSD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@ASAKMOTSD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASAKMOTSD)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/16 "2008-07-18T12:22:31Z")
I have been making much better time in Detroit for the past 6 months. ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/17 "2008-07-18T12:35:32Z")
Hard to say. Commute times during the summer are always less busy. However, I know 3 people from work who have started commuting. I know one person who just sold an SUV and got a Honda Fit, and I know another person who took an SUV to a Ford dealer, and they wouldn’t take it as a trade-in. It SEEMS to me that I’ve seen more disabled vehicles, presumably out of gas. I’ve pulled up to pumps in the city and seen $4.00 from the previous filler. . .less than 1 gallon of gas. But, I can’t say I’ve noticed a marked decrease in number of people driving. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/18 "2008-07-18T13:14:04Z")
We’ve “perceived” it - not sure if our perception is correct or not, tho. Several times my wife and I have been driving the major arterials and expressways W of Chicago, and have commented on hos pleasant the traffic flow was. Roads aren’t empty, but you get the feeling that there are closer to the number of vehicles they were designed to handle. And I’ve noticed that I get caught thru multiple cycles at one notoriously short traffic light near my house less often than I recall being normal. Of course, maybe it is the time of year, and a ton of folk are out of town - or something else. Also have noticed many more motorcycles/scooters. There is a street downtown - Franklin S of Madison - where they allow bike parking. It is really fun to walk down that block in the evening as there may be as many as 30 cycles of aevery imaginable size/make/style backed in to the curb. Fun to see a vintage Vespa bracketed by a Harley and a Ducati… Definitely didn’t happen in past years - I would have remembered. Also really notice the small cars more. Again, not sure if there really are that many more, or if my mind simply has me noticing them. Oh yeah - the train to work has been more crowded than in the past. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/19 "2008-07-18T13:16:55Z")
[QUOTE=InternetLegend] I’ve noticed a lot more motorcycles and scooters and bicycles, and a lot more people on motorcycles and scooters and bicycles who don’t really seem to know how to ride them. [/QUOTE] No kidding. I was behind a scooter (in my car, not on my scooter) yesterday who scared the living crap out of me. You should have seen him take a turn - all the way into the other lane with traffic! And he did it by darting out in front of somebody making a left, too. ---
**Author:** ![Zulema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/db5fbb/32.png) [@Zulema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zulema)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876/20 "2008-07-18T13:20:46Z")
I live in rural area in Wisconsin so there’s no public transit and no good places to ride a bicycle. I have noticed that people are driving a lot closer to the speed limit but not any reduction in the number of drivers. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-noticed-fewer-people-driving-where-you-are/456876.md?page=2)