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Vacationers travel roads closer to home to save the summer
Barbara De Lollis, USA TODAY
“Staycation” may have been the buzzword this summer, but “nearcation” may better describe what travelers did during prime vacation season.
From Minnesota to Maine, many Americans vacationed closer to home rather than staying at home or traveling longer distances.
In an analysis of two summers’ worth of bookings, Travelocity found about 8% of customers who bought air-and-hotel packages last year booked only a hotel closer to home this year, indicating they opted for a kind of near-cation, says Amy Ziff, Travelocity’s editor at large.
And some local tourism agencies already are crediting near-cation goers with helping save the season.
(28 August 2008)
California insurance commissioner backs pay-as-you-drive policies
Marc Lifsher, Los Angeles Times
California drivers could be offered a new — and often cheaper — kind of car insurance next year under a voluntary pay-as-you-drive plan proposed Wednesday by Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner.
His plan would base annual rates partly on the exact number of miles driven and would allow people to pay less if they drive less. Poizner issued proposed regulations spelling out the plan, and the state’s insurers Wednesday were enthusiastic about the idea but wanted to see more details.
Two out of three households in the state could save an average of $276 per vehicle, and lower-income people, who generally use their cars less than the middle class or the wealthy, might save even more, said a July study by the Brookings Institution in Washington. However, some high-mileage drivers might see their rates increase by opting for pay as you drive, the Brookings report said.
Putting a pay-as-you-drive system in place would give motorists a reason to drive less and thus purchase less gasoline, proponents argue.
Environmentalists are big supporters of the idea and predict the scheme would cut emissions of greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming.
(28 August 2008)
