Rural America feels extra pain as gas prices rise

By James B. Kelleher

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Traci and Brian Bruckner between them commute 800 miles a week to and from their respective jobs -- his 30 miles away from their home in one direction, hers 50 miles away in another.

With gas prices up 25 percent up since they moved to Wayne, Nebraska, just two years ago, Traci says they have been forced to cut back everywhere and postpone replacing the car Brian relies on to get to work.

"It has 200,000 miles on it so we need to get a new one," she said. "But we just can't afford to."

The spike in fuel prices pinching U.S. consumers is creating special challenges in the country's rural heartland, where residents typically earn less than their urban counterparts and travel longer distances -- often in older, less efficient vehicles -- to get to work.

Experts worry that if the surge continues -- while prices have eased over the past month, the cost of an average gallon is still up 30 percent over the past year and double what it cost four years ago -- it may threaten a three-decade-long population rebound that helped revitalize the country's rural core.

For much of the 20th century, most rural U.S. counties saw their population shrink as mechanization of agriculture eliminated jobs and pushed residents toward the big cities.

But that began to shift in the mid-1970s, as Americans began to flock back into rural areas.

Today, an estimated 50 million Americans -- about 17 percent of the population -- reside in the countryside. Only one-fifth of those live in so-called exurban areas -- on the fringes of cities. The rest live in places like Tipton, Iowa, the town of 3,200 where Bob Bird moved a decade ago to enjoy the simplicity -- and affordability -- of rural life.

"It's a great place to live," said Bird, who drives 80 miles a day to his job as a roofer in Davenport. "But you can't work here."

Like Bird, many Tipton residents support themselves by driving to jobs in Davenport, as well as cities like Iowa City and Cedar Rapids.

"When I got here, 10 years ago, gas was $1 a gallon," said Bird. "It wasn't even a factor. I just enjoyed living in the country and so we just kind of took it in stride. But now it's a little crazy."

Experts say a number of factors contributed to the urban exodus and the rural renaissance, including frustration with housing costs, schools, crime and congestion associated with cities.

But cheap gas prices also played a role, making it possible for Americans to enjoy the best of both worlds: the peace, quiet and perceived affordability of rural living while still getting paid in big city dollars.

"Commutes of 35, 40 miles each way are not uncommon out here in the country," said Chuck Hassebrook, the executive director of the Center for Rural Affairs, a policy analysis and advocacy group focused on rural life in the upper Midwest and Great Plains. "So higher gas prices hurt."

Higher gas prices also make rural life a lot less idyllic, and less attractive to the urban refugees they rely on to sustain their populations.