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08/26/2007Now that $3 for gas is the norm, drivers and businesses face a ...Hard Road Ahead
By day Ted Forcier sits behind a desk and drives a a Ford Explorer. In the evening he fires up his his VW Rabbit and goes door-to-door selling reflective address signs. "The rabbit cost me about $1,000. and I figure it will save me that much in gas in a year. So in a little over a very I will have paid for it in gas savings," said Forcier. TRAVERSE CITY — When gas hit $3 a gallon in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, most Americans took a wait-and-see attitude before re-thinking their driving habits. Now that it appears the $3 gallon is here to stay, many of those same people are making lasting changes. And nowhere is that more apparent than in northern Michigan, which saw some of the highest gasoline prices in the country — $4.16 a gallon on Beaver Island — in May. "There has been a shift in business,” said Janice Teppo, manager of Sleepy Bear Campground in Empire with her husband, Jim. "Before, we'd get oodles of reservations in May, way ahead. Now they're going week by week to make sure they can come. They're scared to make it ahead of time, with the fluctuation in gas prices. And the people who used to come for a weekend now stay a week.” Teppo said the steady rise in gas prices has also affected staffing at the 200-site family campground, which hires "work campers” from places like Texas, Arizona and Florida. "People are (usually) begging to come to Michigan, and this year it's been hard to find help,” she said. "And all the reasons were from the gas prices.” While tourism in western Michigan usually increases 3-5 percent annually, it has been flat or has increased by just 1-2 percent each year the last couple of years, said Rick Hert, executive director of the West Michigan Tourist Association. Still, Hert isn't discouraged. "I'm hearing stability. That pleases me, even with the gas prices,” he said. "I'm not seeing increases, I'm not seeing decreases. We're fortunate in western Michigan that we have very tried and true tourism destinations that will always do well. Traverse City is one of them,” he added. Some drivers have responded to sticker shock at the pumps by taking up carpooling or turning to public transportation. Bay Area Transportation Authority ridership was up 6 percent May 1 through July 31 over the same period last year, said BATA operations supervisor Dave Berg. Others are cutting down on quick trips to the store or buying more fuel-efficient cars — or both. Misty Sheehan traded her pickup for a mini-SUV to help reduce gas costs. She also cut down on the number of trips she makes to Traverse City from her home in Empire, even dropping out of several church committees that required more frequent commutes. "I'll go in once a week in the fall, so I'll try to do everything that once a week,” said Sheehan, who teaches liberal studies at Grand Valley State University and online courses in Asian studies at the College of DuPage. "But then there's book club, and if I want to go to church ... ” Sheehan, 62, said her goal is to fill up her Honda CRV only once a week — even if it means she has less face-to-face contact with her friends in town. "When I first came up in 2002, gas was $1.29. Now it's almost three times that,” she said. "When I'm living on a fixed income, that makes a big difference.” Sherry Wild kept her Ford Expedition but bought a scooter for summer. The bright red, 49cc Piaggio not only gets 110 miles a gallon but saves wear and tear on her car, she added. A youth group leader at Grawn United Methodist Church, Wild, 49, said she drives the scooter everywhere, from her home south of Grawn to the church district office in Traverse City, her sister's house near Karlin and school meetings in Kingsley. "I put $2 and 4 cents in it the other day,” she said. "If you were to average it all out, it adds up to about $4 a week. I feel good that I'm not using as much gas — I think that it sets a good example for my kids and shows them not to be afraid to try something just because it's not the norm.” What isn't the norm now may soon change. Since starting a Vespa dealership in May, "things are booming,” said Lori Watson, who also owns Nature and Me RV in Traverse City with her husband. "We definitely see a business fluctuation with gas,” she said. "When the gas prices go up, our (Vespa) business goes up. With towns like Traverse City becoming more urban, people are able to run to the grocery store, run to the bank (without) starting up their big car.” While the dealership sells Piaggios and classic Vespas ranging from 50cc to 500cc, Watson said the small mopeds offer riders low-cost registration and step-through and twist-and-go convenience without the hassle and expense of a helmet, insurance, plate or title. Plus they're relatively inexpensive and easy to ride, making them an attractive alternative for people of all ages and genders. "We just sold one to a woman with hip replacements,” she said. For Maggie Pezzullo, scooters are not an option. The 23-year-old Traverse City woman injured her back while serving in Iraq in 2003 and 2004 and can't afford the gas to Saginaw for extensive rehabilitation at a VA facility. "It's a three-hour trip to Saginaw,” said Pezzullo, who put her treatment on hold after being told she needs three days of physical and chiropractic therapy a week as well as occupational therapy and other care. "It was like, do I want to spend $100 to $200 in gas to go to Saginaw or buy groceries? Yes, (the VA) reimburse me, but they reimburse me 11 cents a mile.” Pezzullo isn't the only one for whom affording higher gas costs has been a struggle. The Grand Traverse-Leelanau Department of Human Services is running low on gas cards to help clients get to work, "and we just heard that message a month ago,” said director Mary Marois. But Marois said higher gasoline prices are just part of a "bigger package” affecting her clients that also includes higher prices for propane and natural gas, and fewer jobs. "The message I just gave to my board is that by the end of May, we'd spent almost as much money helping people with rent, heat and utilities as we had in all of 2006,” she said.
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