make any tree-hugger proud. She is attempting to drive her car all summer on just one tank of gas. Brancaccio doesn't drive a gas-sipping hybrid and isn't towing around a trailer full of fuel. She drives an average Honda sedan that probably gets good mileage but has not been modified in any way.With just over a month of summer still left to go, the gas gauge is definitely tilting towards empty. But Brancaccio isn't worried. Like many drivers, she's changed her routine to cut back on buying gas, but it's safe to say she has cut back much more than most people. Typically, she drives her car 1.5 miles to a park-and-ride facility where she gets on a bus with many other commuters and goes to work. She said she drives slower now and uses cruise control when possible to save gas. The difference is that she now arrives an hour early due to the bus schedule.
That's no problem, though, as it gives her time to read."I've read a lot this summer," she said as she relaxed in a lobby before going to work. "I've read about 10 books." Brancaccio also picks up rides from friends and sometimes borrows her mother's car to avoid using her own. But she also walks a lot more and said she's switched from heels to flat shoes for more comfort.She says she still has many other tricks to use to stretch that last quarter-tank to the finish line. She thinks she can drive about 3 miles per day at the most and still make it.
While she said she doesn't consider herself a staunch environmentalist, she "respects the fact that… we need to be wary about what we do" when it comes to fuel use.
Brancaccio is tracking her experiment with her blog.
We here at HAWO salute her efforts in giving the gas companies the finger and while we're not with her in action (fuck riding the bus) we're certainly with her in spirit and fully support the movement she started.
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