Photo on the 10 Freeway by billaday via Flickr

Averaging at just about $4.19 for a gallon of regular gas on Sunday in the Los Angeles area, prices continue to increase with an unknown end in site. The ripple effect is still unknown, but people are noticing some freeways thinning out and Metro is reporting record high numbers of ridership. Keeping all this in mind, the Daily News brings up some interesting figures:

As average statewide gas prices hit $4.16 a gallon last week - up 22 percent from last year - state officials note driving already has dropped this year by 1.5 percent.

That means Californians this year have traveled 1 billion fewer miles than in 2007, according to Caltrans. And the popular summer driving season is expected to see a 1 percent drop in gas consumption - the first decline in 17 years at a time when gas use typically soars, according to federal energy officials.

LA County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, who has also noticed shorter commute times, joked about congestion pricing, something that is being discussed for Los Angeles. "We have congestion pricing right now," he said. "It's called OPEC."