Carnival Cutbacks and the Fuel Crisis
August 21st, 2008There are a million things one might think of when they think of the fuel crisis. Many of us think of higher prices for travel, higher prices for food, a four day work or school week with added hours each day, bills that are harder to pay, and other results of the issues we are having with fuel.
One thing that we might not have thought about – and I certainly have not, until now – is traveling carnivals. Yes, these carnivals are being hit pretty hard because traveling carnivals need fuel for most of what they do. Fuel is, of course absolutely necessary for the carnivals to actually travel. A lot of fuel. Many of the traveling carnivals drive by trucks that use diesel fuel – which has become very pricey lately.
Traveling across regions, states and even the country, is expensive even without the fuel crisis to deal with. Consider, though, the fact that food, lodging, fuel for rides and other costs have gone up accordingly.
This has become enough of a problem for some carnivals to reduce the amounts of miles they have to travel. They have cut out some of the cities they visit and they have decided to stay within smaller areas to contain costs. They have also cut some of the rides they offer in an effort to save fuel and money.
This may seem like a frivolous issue when compared to the fuel crisis itself, issues with the economy, wars, politics and other problems, but it is not. It shows that some of the things that we take for granted have been affected by high prices for fuel. When we are at the point where the neighborhood carnival – a tradition that has rolled into towns across the country for decades – is diminishing, it is time to take note and try harder to fix some of the problems.
If not, what’s next? Will we end up losing the ice cream man, too?
Tags: carnivals, carpooling, fuel crisis, fuel prices, Gas Prices, traveling carnivals