“Surging gas prices have hit American drivers hard — but some much harder than others,” the Washington Post reports.“For households in the bottom quarter of the income distribution — those earning roughly $40,000 a year or less — commuting fuel costs now consume an average of about 4 percent of their income…”“Lower-income workers tend to live farther from their jobs, in areas with little or no public transit, and are more likely to drive older, less fuel-efficient vehicles. Many are not able to work from home. When prices rise, they have few ways to reduce their exposure — cutting back on driving means cutting back on getting to work, to doctors, to family.”