COMMENTARY:
Rising fuel prices may feel like an economic burden, but they also reveal a larger issue about how communities are designed. For decades, many American cities prioritized cars over people. As a result, families now spend large portions of their income simply moving from one place to another, even for trips that could reasonably be walked or biked if proper infrastructure existed. But what if part of the solution is not simply cheaper gas? What if the solution is giving people the ability to safely walk or bike for short trips?
As someone who studies children’s active travel, walkability, and transportation environments in New Mexico, I have spent time observing how communities move and how transportation systems shape daily life. Through work connected to Safe Routes to School programs, I have seen children who genuinely enjoy walking and biking when safe conditions exist. I have also seen parents who want to allow their children to walk or cycle but feel forced to drive because roads feel unsafe, crossings are difficult, or sidewalks are missing. The problem is not that people dislike walking. The problem is that many cities have been designed in ways that make driving the only realistic option. And increasingly, those transportation choices are affecting household finances as much as mobility itself.
The economics tell a clear story. A parent driving one mile to school each morning and one mile back may not notice the cost on any given day. But those short trips accumulate fuel, wear on the vehicle, and time, quietly draining household budgets month after month, year after year. Replacing even a handful of those short car trips each week with walking or cycling can generate meaningful savings over time. In communities where transportation costs already consume a disproportionate share of family income, that difference matters.
The case for active travel does not stop at savings. Walking and cycling improve physical health by increasing daily activity and reducing sedentary behavior. Research consistently shows that children who walk or bike to school tend to arrive more alert and ready to learn. Adults who integrate walking into their routines report lower stress levels, better cardiovascular health, and improved mental well-being. When walking and biking becomes part of daily routine, exercise stops being something you schedule for, it simply happens.
There is also an equity dimension that deserves attention. The families most burdened by rising fuel costs are often those with the fewest alternatives, living in neighborhoods where walkable infrastructure was never prioritized. Investing in sidewalks, protected bike lanes, and safe crossings is not a luxury for progressive cities. It is a practical intervention that expands options for the households that need them most.
Rising fuel prices are painful. But they may also be clarifying. This moment offers an opportunity to rethink transportation not merely as a matter of mobility, but as a matter of affordability, health, equity, and the kind of communities we want to live in. The future of affordable transportation may not begin at the gas pump. It may begin on the sidewalk, at the bike lane, or along the short trip that never needed a car in the first place.
Matilda Bekoe's opinions are her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of KRWG Public Media or NMSU.