Prepared for Rising Gas Prices

nose dive, originally uploaded by deana rae.

A story in the New York Times today says that Americans are better prepared for rising gas prices than we were when they went up in 2008. As prices rise, people tend to either scale back on driving, or on discretionary spending like cable and phone service. Others, like one neighbor, have switched to more fuel-efficient vehicles:

Drivers like Tival Williams, 39, a self-employed fashion designer from the Ditmas Park area of Brooklyn, also learned from the last price spike. Mr. Williams dumped his large S.U.V. and now drives a thriftier Mazda CX-9 crossover. “Then I was paying $100 a week” for gas, he said. “Now I’m paying $70 a week.”

With rising gas prices and a new study that shows NYC is ready to overtake Los Angeles as the gridlock capital of the U.S., will more drivers choose mass transit? Or is the convenience of a car still better than wondering when (or if) a train is going to come?