EclectEcon

No foolin'.

Following the recent increase in the price of gasoline, more people seem to be taking public transportation. This result emphasizes not only the substitution effect, but also the fact that gasoline/petrol is NOT a necessity and that even in the short-run, demand curves are downward-sloping. When the price goes up, some people cut back on the quantity demanded to some extent.

From the Trono Glob & Mule, aka The Toronto Globe and Mail [long gone behind a price wall now, unfortunately]:

Gas prices are up across the country, but no major city has been hit harder than Vancouver with an average pump price of $1.272 a litre for regular unleaded gasoline. It's been climbing steadily toward that record since February. But as gas prices continue to rise, so does the number of people who use public transit.

I expect that the comparatively higher price of gasoline in Europe also helps to explain why public transportation systems are used so much more here. Helps.