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Two things that limit automobile use are cost of operation and traffic density. Both affect the cost of convenience in time and money. More streamlining will be used to get the US fleet to the next CAFE of 56 mpg. Because more money will be spent on R&D and better materials the unit price of a small car will not come down. Comfort, reliability, and safety are the real selling points. Horsepower numbers are no longer as important as the feel of going from 30-60 mph in a rush. As more of us join the newly poorer, the aero commuter bike and trailer will get more use within the daily 25 mile radius. Aero motorcycles and trailers will get more attractive for longer trips up to 5 hours duration. The latest Craig Vetter attempt at streamlining, the electric motorcycle, has proven successful. The electric motorcycle still costs about double price of a 250cc bike. The Cd of such machines could be as low as 0.30 but no measurements have been published yet to my knowledge. The typical sport bike has a Cd of 0.60 because of the lack of a tail piece; such devices are still banned on race bikes.
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