If you pave it, they will park

As gas prices begin to settle in around $3 a gallon -- remember a few months ago when $2 a gallon seemed insanely expensive? -- Alabama's park-and-ride lots are becoming more than just attractive places for small-town teenagers to hang out and drink.

As The Birmingham News reports today, usage of the state's lots has increased dramatically in the last year as more commuters living in fringe suburbs have begun to carpool to cut down on gas costs. Transportation officials hope to encourage further fuel conservation by building 11 more lots near Birmingham and extending mass transit services to them.