Atlanta is one of the large, solid business centers in the United States.  It is also in a very difficult situation when it comes to fuel for commuters – there is a dire shortage.  It’s not just that prices are high – it’s that people are having a hard time finding gasoline.  Commuters are often traveling 10 to 20 miles out of their way to find a gas station that has fuel, then waiting in line for 30 to 60 minutes to be able to fill their tanks.

Employers have taken note and are trying to use some creative ideas when it comes to dealing with the commute – or non commute – and getting the work done.

One way that employers are dealing with the situation is by doing two things that other cities and some businesses in Atlanta had already been doing as the fuel crisis has been increasing.  Some businesses have gone to a 4 day, 10 hour per day work week, eliminating one day of commuting which saves gas and money for employees.  Many businesses have implemented a system of telecommuting so that unless employees actually have to be in the office, they can perform their regular duties from home.  Telecommuting has been around for a while now, but some employer have been reluctant to try it for various reasons, including the fact that they feel it is not as effective, efficient or productive.  Actually, employers that have been using telecommuting for some time now report just the opposite – employees are getting more done and doing a better job.  The current fuel crisis is forcing some employers to try telecommuting and/or the 4 day work week, and that may be the norm for the future.

Other ways that employers are trying to get the work done and help employees at the same time include providing van and carpools, subsidizing or paying for bus or rail passes so employee do not have to drive and even other employers are offering employees $500 if they buy a car that has two cylinders less than they are driving now and $1,000 if they buy a hybrid.

The Clean Air Campaign in Atlanta,  is so busy trying to field questions and help employers and employees with ideas in the face of the fuel crisis, that they have had to add several employees to handle the overflow.  Though the fuel crisis is creating difficulties and inconveniences for commuters, employers and employees alike, it  is also creating opportunities to develop short term and long term ideas that can prevent this type of situation from happening again.

It is unfortunate that things had to get to this point and people have had to find answers to hard questions very quickly, however, necessity, as they say, is the mother of invention.  Now that the necessity is upon us and the inventions are coming to the fore, we should continue to develop them, improve them and stay focused on them, unlike the way we forgot many of the ideas and lessons of the gas shortages of the 1970’s and 1980’s.  Let’s take the opportunity – like Atlanta is doing – to be creative and to get it right this time.

Tags: clean air, commuing, fuel crisis, fuel shortages, gas, gas stations, telecommuting

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 2nd, 2008 at 2:01 pm and is filed under Gas Prices. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.