You’re probably right about the switchover from trucks to trains. It only makes sense because trains are so much more efficient and can carry hundreds of truck loads (including truck trailers) to and fro.

This would be nice, since the semi’s make travel pretty difficult.

Just like when rail workers were gradually displaced by trucks and air freight, though, there will be a lot of truck drivers looking for new work. This is a big potential employment problem.

The more I read about fuel prices, peak oil and the strategic planning of the automakers, the future will see a movement away from oil and more toward hybrids that can run on some combination of E85 (probably cellulosic ethanol) and electricity.

We’ve probably seen the last days of easy oil — that’s why the big American automakers are retooling and closing down truck factories.

If we’re not careful and don’t get ahead of our fuel needs, we may end up seeing what is happening in Spain — trucker strikes that shut down businesses.

E85 may be just the first step on a long line of innovations.