Free market forces, not politics, are producing results at gasoline and diesel pumps. Oil prices have declined and are hovering around $90 a barrel, giving motorists a little relief as we head into the annual vacation and peak travel time of the year.
Analysts say lower oil demand and a stronger dollar have contributed to gasoline’s price decline. Still, it’s not known whether pump prices will fall enough to encourage cash-strapped families to take trips this summer. What is clear is that stable, affordable supplies of fuel offer Americans one of our most important freedoms: mobility.
Our freedom to go anywhere, anytime, using several modes of travel — motor vehicles, airplanes, trains and boats — is an important part of who we are. For the vast majority Americans, highway vehicular travel is essential for getting to and from work, school, day care, the grocery store and houses of worship. In 2009, there were more than 254 million registered passenger vehicles in the United States, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, and in 2010, Americans drove nearly 3 trillion miles.
Truck drivers account for nearly 290 billion miles traveled each year, according to the Department of Transportation, as they deliver goods and services. Together, truckers and motorists pay billions of dollars in user fees to repair and maintain the nation’s roadways and contribute to economic growth through their expenditures for vehicles, tires, parts and fuel, as well as food and shelter en route.
Having a reliable and secure supply of oil unhindered by the political strife in unstable regions of the world is the key not just to preserving mobility, but to U.S. economic prosperity. Conversely, high fuel prices are a budget buster for families and small-business owners.
President Bush recognized this fact with oil prices rose above $145 a barrel in 2008, prompting him to issue an executive order ending the administration’s ban on offshore drilling. Over the next few months, the price of oil — and gasoline — dropped precipitously, reaching about $61 a barrel by Election Day.
It’s conceivable that a similar announcement by the Obama administration could have the same impact. But more importantly, it could help to put America on the road toward an economic recovery that creates jobs and opportunities instead of debt.
With access to most federal lands blocked, drillers have purchased leases to private land, created jobs, and launched an energy boom that could yet pave the way to U.S. energy independence. If they could drill on more federal lands and use proven technologies such as hydraulic fracturing, they could do much more. As Jack Gerard of the American Petroleum Institute said recently, “New discoveries, enhanced production technologies and efficiency improvements mean we have more oil and natural gas resources than anyone thought possible just 20 years ago.”
Ample natural gas supplies have made that fuel more affordable, prompting some companies to rethink their transportation systems. Frito-Lay plans to replace most of its long-haul trucks with new natural gas-powered vehicles. United Parcel Service is expanding its natural gas fleet, and Pilot Flying J is working with a natural gas supplier to install liquid natural gas tanks at truck stops across the country.
Investments like these are expected to produce benefits for the economy, the environment, and for the millions of American workers who are looking for work. With the right policies in place, the energy industry alone offers the potential to create more than one million new U.S. jobs by 2018, according to a Wood Mackenzie study.
The United States needs energy policies that encourage production and keep America moving forward. For motorists who cherish their freedom of mobility; for truck and bus drivers who rely on affordable logistics to prosper; and for consumers who absorb transportation costs in their everyday purchases; it is important that these policies are put in place as soon as possible.
Greg Cohen is president and CEO of the American Highway Users Alliance in Washington.
