When gas prices went sky-high, a lot of people started telecommuting to save money. But now gas prices have started to drop, will more people start driving to work again? And what will that do to the environment?

Come on, you must have noticed. When prices went up there was just less traffic on the road… less crowding on the freeways. Even during rush hour the drive home (on the days you drove in) just wasn’t so bad. The hit to people’s wallet was enough to make people change their behaviors.

This was great for the environment. We all know that exchanging your old-fashioned light-bulbs with electric light-bulbs, or even driving a Prius, just reduces the energy you consume. But telecommuting, and other methods to actually avoid driving your car, are by far the absolute biggest ways for an individual to really help the environment.

But then the gas prices started to drop. Now, I’m hoping some people were so thrilled by the joys of telecommuting that they kept it up regardless. But I know that some people saw the costs go down and hopped right back on the freeway again. And I think this is a real shame. Although we all intellectually understand the dangers of global warming (I hope), and have the best of intentions to do our bit for the environment, the reality is, it can be hard to do the right thing.

But money is a much bigger motivator. When it hits our personal budget, we’ll do much more, go much further, make much greater sacrifices to save a few dollars. When these changes we make benefit the environment, all the better.

So now I’m going to say something that may shock or bother many of you.

I actually hope gas prices go up again. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like the high prices any more than the next guy. I have 2 small children along with the pre-requisite mini-van and I’ll tell you that filling that beast up at the pumps can cost me an arm and a leg when prices are high. But I know when prices are up, more people are taking actions that are good for the environment.

So if you were telecommuting when prices were up, don’t stop when they go down. If you found some inconveniences to telecommuting or some aspects of your work or interactions with your boss and co-workers were a bit more challenging, there’s many ways to overcome these. Take a few minutes to do a little research – you’ll find plenty of tips and tools out there to help you. Make the effort and keep telecommuting. It’s good for your wallet, and it’s good for the environment!