This is a great way to deal with high gas prices: not drive. (Much, much better than the truckers who decided to drive around the Capitol, wasting expensive gas). From the AP via Consumerist:

“The goal is to not use one drop of gas for 31 days,” LaFave said, calling it his personal stand against the oil companies.

Now LaFave, 31, is riding his bicycle or walking everywhere he goes. He won’t even let friends pick him up unless they already planned on being in the neighborhood.

LaFave fills out a chart each day listing how many miles he bikes, the destination and the gas price that day, among other things. He plans to compute his savings and donate that amount to a charity that provides food to children in Africa.

Despite the Consumerist commenters cheering “way to send a message to the oil companies,” and whether LaFave is protesting or just adapting, this isn’t a boycott. It’s consumers responding to high prices by shifting behavior. When gas prices stay high, which they surely will, LaFave can keep on biking and convince friends to do the same. And that’s great.

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Tagged: bicycling, gas prices, roads, wisconsin

David Alpert created Greater Greater Washington in 2008 and was its executive director until 2020. He formerly worked in tech and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco Bay, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He lives with his wife and two children in Dupont Circle.