Denise Barr is a longtime marketing consultant who works out of her home and has many clients in Portland. She recently began stacking her client appointments on the same days to reduce car trips to and from Portland.

“Gas prices have forced me to think more about how much I drive. Driving, when I don't need to, doesn't make any sense! And saving time is just as important as saving money. I stack about four meetings a day when I drive to the city. I then use the other days as home office days when I can get my work done instead of wasting time driving around,” says Barr.

Barr also explains that she does more one-stop shopping these days. All items go on a list and she goes shopping once a week on the way home from Portland. As the mother of two boys, she no longer drives to and from the video store, but has signed up for an online DVD service. Again, she says it’s as much about saving time as it is about saving money.

“I don’t see it as giving anything up; it’s about being more effective,” she says.

Barr estimates she drives 150 fewer miles per week by trip chaining. With her vehicle’s gas mileage, that equates to about $30 a week. Additional savings in parking and gas are generated by car pooling with her Portland area business partner to meetings once she arrives in the city.

“With a little extra planning, I save time and money," Barr says. "It’s about being smarter. Even if gas prices go down, I will keep reducing my car trips.”

Cheryl Hansen keeps busy running her own consulting company, maintaining her farm and being an actress.

“It is very important that I conserve my resources like time, fuel and driving so that I am more productive,” says Hansen. In order to conserve these valuable resources, Cheryl combines all of her appointments and errands.

“You can only be so productive in the car, so in order to utilize my time best, I try to spend the least amount of time possible in my car,” she says.

Living in Aurora and having clients in Portland requires Hansen to commute for her consulting jobs.

“I try to schedule and fit my appointments and errands into a structured list so I can be more productive and mindful of my resources. When I take the car out, I make a point to have at least three appointments or errands to run,” Hansen says.

Hansen will only spend two to three days a week traveling into Portland, and on these days she schedules her appointments towards the middle of the day to avoid traffic.

“Avoiding rush-hour traffic when running errands is an efficient use of time and money. It is all about the timing,” Hansen says. “Get in and get out.”