FACTBOX: Five signs of tumbling U.S. oil demand

NEW YORK (Reuters) - High fuel prices have stifled consumer demand in the United States, the world's biggest consumer of oil. Americans' renowned love for road travel has cooled this summer as gasoline prices have topped $4 per gallon for much of the peak driving season.

The following are some signs of the slowing demand:

BIGGEST U.S. OIL DEMAND DROP IN 26 YEARS

- U.S. oil demand during the first half of 2008 had the largest volume decline in 26 years, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

ROAD TRAVEL IN DECLINE

- More Americans are choosing to keep off the road, according to data from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Since November 2007, road travel has dropped by 53.2 billion miles, a decline in driving that tops the driving slowdown seen during the 1970s oil crisis.

MASS TRANSIT RIDERSHIP AT RECORD HIGH

- A record number of Americans are taking buses, trains, and trolleys, according to the American Public Transportation Association. Mass transit use reached a 50-year high last year as drivers left their cars at home due to high prices at the pump.

RETAIL SALES OF GASOLINE DOWN

- With gasoline prices 36.7 percent higher than they were at this time last year, gasoline demand year to date is 2.4 percent below year-ago levels, according to MasterCard Advisors' weekly Spendingpulse report.

FEWER ACCIDENTS

- Fewer drivers on the road mean fewer accidents, according to billionaire investor Warren Buffett, the chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway, the parent company of Geico, one of the largest U.S. auto insurers.

"If they don't take their car out of the garage, we are not going to have an accident," Buffett said.

(Compiled by Rebekah Kebede; editing by Jim Marshall)