High gas prices = more Metro riders?

So we all know that gas is expensive, right? But it's kind of amazing what it's driving people to do — according to KHOU, Metro ridership has increased 10 percent in the last few months. Since September, the average price of a gallon of gas in Houston has increased about 15 cents, but Metro has recorded 4 million more bus boardings and 600,000 more light-rail boardings than in the same period last year. Of course, the rise in readership may not be totally based on higher gas prices:

While high gas prices are the most obvious reason, "That's not the only one. There's a combination of factors and it's difficult to pinpoint which one played the bigger part. There's population increase and relocation of Hurricane Katrina evacuees," said Sandra Salazar of Metro.

While construction once forced metro to change downtown routes, they are now stable and attracting more commuters.

The news made Houstonist wonder if the rise in ridership in Houston is something new — and it turns out the 10 percent increase in the last six months is smaller than the nearly 15 percent increase Metro experienced between November 2004 and November 2005. It'll be interesting to see if the surge sticks — Houston has a long way to go before it's a mass transit-friendly town, but $15-per-gallon gas might just be the thing to get us riding.