No choice but to keep driving and paying
Four Florida cities are among the nation’s 10 most expensive cities to drive in.Pensacola tops the chart of cities ranked by percentage of family income spent on gasoline. An average two-car Pensacola family spends 14.5% of its yearly income -- or $4,181 -- on gas.
Orlando was third, with the average family spending 13.0% of its income, or $4,382. (Orlando’s average family income is higher.) In sixth place was Jacksonville, with a spending rate of 11.6%, and Tampa-St. Petersburg ranked seventh, with 11.5%.
The top places on this list have a fairly low median income, a sprawling metro area and high gas prices, a combination which puts a serious dent in a family’s pocketbook. “The rising fuel prices have placed an incredible burden on families which were already living very close to the edge,” says the study by the research group Sperling’s Best Places. “And, often, they have no choice but to keep driving and paying.”
Read the whole survey here.
For a look at the combined effect of rising gas prices and the upward spiral of housing costs, see previous post here.
posted by Jacqueline Dowd @ 9:18 AM
1 Comments:
The study does not appear to have included the cost of vehicle maintenance, car payments, automobile insurance, tag fees or tolls, not to mention the cost we all pay as taxpayers for roadway construction and maintenance. More emphasis should be placed on providing public transportation so that we do have a choice.
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