Suburbs are the reason everything is designed around cars now. And cars are the reason suburbs are practical. (Chicken and egg.) And that system only works when you've got cheap gas.

We keep spending general fund money to keep driving cheap. That's going to keep working right up until someone else wants the gas as much as we do, and China is coming on strong. When there's more demand than supply, things will go pear shaped in a hurry.

Economies that depend on cheap gas will be hurt first and most. Hell, we can't even grow and distribute food without huge inputs of fossil fuels. Most of us (in the suburbs) can't get to work without cars, and there are no public transit options to switch to.