Be safe, save (Sabong News)
Author
Jullie Y. Daza
Date
MARCH 12 2022
Just when people are more free to move around, here comes the one big reason to not move around so much. The escalating cost of fuel should keep us at home more than driving out on a whim or just because the car is parked, doing nothing.
For reasons of safety from a virus we were locked down, almost immobilized, for two years. Now on the brink of Alert Level 0 and with the prices of gasoline and diesel spiking every week, we have no choice but to stay home and save gas, save our cars from unnecessary wear and tear.
From playing safe to saving money by conserving utilities for the good of all and our own personal comfort and convenience, we are also forced to good by saving water. Fuel is an imported commodity, water is a natural resource, money is an artificial unit of measurement. Of these three elements, money is the only one we have direct control over. To squander today and have nothing tomorrow? Or, waste not, want not.
Saving fuel means saving pesos and centavos, but to Beanie, 16, and Alli, 11, home as classroom is a ton easier than reporting in person for school, if only to avoid the stressful, agonizing traffic on the road going to and from campus. To adults, working from home is a sound idea all over again, never mind how they missed the interaction and socializing in the office. They’ve had practice and they were good at it — who’s complaining?
Senator Joel Villanueva is all for WFH. Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte has banned motorcades as a costly exercise. In contrast, Manila Mayor Isko Moreno, who’s also on the campaign trail, was caught in a 12-hour jam during a provincial sortie recently, but he’s not pulling out the welcome mat for candidates of any and all political parties.
Tips from motoring experts are easy to follow and just as easy to ignore. Plan your trips. Avoid speeding, avoid sudden braking. (Stop-and-go traffic is a drain!) Why drive 10 km to satisfy a craving for a certain dish unless you’re pregnant? Any extra weight in your boot weighs on your car’s efficiency. Check your tire pressure. Simple but so taken-for-granted!
