Some grist for the discussion mill:

-According to the Inflation Calculator the $.50/gal gas of 1973 would cost $2.55/gal today just due to inflation.
-According to oil company ads there is plenty of oil. It is just getting more expensive to produce. So, higher prices are in order.
-According to TV news people are driving much less when compared to prior years.
-According to the same news there is excess refining capacity thus demonstrating that availability is not driving the current price spike.
-For the US it appears that places that rely on Canadian oil, mainly the Rocky Mountain area, have lower gas prices than either coast. Thus indicating that the price spike is not due to quantity available but source.

So, there is every indication the current price woes in the US and around the globe are due almost exclusively to those favorite villians, The Financial Industry. Their fears, hopes and profit goals are being played out in the commodities market. That this has serious effects on everyone else is quite incidental.

How does this all play in the context of this topic? After all this thread is about bicycle use.

I see an increase in bicycle use where climate and daily life permit. But, because the US infrastructure is inextricably linked to the highway system I don't see that change as being more than a marginal one. What I do see is a growth in the fuel conversion industry changing vehicles from gasoline/diesel to natural gas as a fuel source. The world is almost literally awash in natural gas.

Plus, in today's global economy getting enough money to make major changes in infrastructure is going to be pretty near impossilbe. Add to that the demonstrated fact that as soon as poor people get enough money they change from bike to car and it becomes clear that bicycles are mostly at the margin transportation.

Well I do remember when gas did go up in the 70s, it did get a lot more people out on bikes. It seemed to peak in the early 80s with the Olympics, and kinda went down hill after that . However by the mid 90s bents started to take hold some. People learned that it doesnt have to hurt to ride a bike.

So, do your bit for the fuel situation- Ride a bike, and eat more three bean chilli . Make natural gas the fuel of the future .

That's odd. I would have sworn Iran's threat to close the Persian Gulf, divert all their oil sales to China, and turn the entire region into a nuclear playground might have had something to do with it

Actually, from a supply and demand perspective it doesn't; at least from the public pronouncements of those in the industry. What it does do is make the commodities traders nervous and anxious to get as much as they can to maximize profits. A person who spends a fair bit of time studying the stock and commodities markets quickly comes to the correct conclusion they are tied to the actual economy by the equivalent of a loose rubber band. In most ways they are effectively legalized gambling that depends on the "greater fool" theory to make money. And changes in the actual economy do affect them. But, most of the price movement has more to do with jockeying among the traders than anything real.

According to a video currently posted in A&S, the number of trips by bicycle has increased by a factor of 2 and one-half over the past decade. Perhaps not coincidentally, the price of gasoline has increased by a similar factor. I think the increase in cycling is largely, but not exclusively, driven by cohort change: Young people are less inclined to become dependent on what they perceive as a fading technology (cars) and are choosing to drive less or not at all (which is good considering their dependence on cell phones and texting).

Like others here, I have noticed an increase in the number of people riding bikes since the start of the Lesser Depression. Four years ago I could stroll along the riverfront bike paths near my home and see more cars on them than bikes most days; that is a rare occurrence now. I have also noticed that the folks who live in the suburbs aren't making as many trips back and forth between town and home. Whether this is driven by our economic situation, fuel prices, environmental concerns, politics, something else or some combination is unknown to me, I just enjoy the decreased risk of riding.

I sure hope the trends I think I am seeing are real and continue to grow. I doubt if this is "The Year" that hordes of folks take to bikes, but I wouldn't mind if it turned out to be.

Will this year be the year? Nope.

I think it may depend on where you're at .
I've had bike trails in my hometown since 1986 .
(Constitution Bicentennial)
The trail, for many people,
has become their transportation route .
But it's had 35 years to work it's magic.