This raises questions as to how forward thinking is the free market system. Their myopia is both a blessing and a curse. The blessing is that they didn't prepare far enough ahead to introduce monstrosities like coal-to-liquids which could have easily out outdone tar sands. The curse for the growthists is that the global economy will have to slow down. I doubt that plug-in cars will be quite the success some anticipate since we are used to full performance driving 500km on a tank.

I think in Australia's case natural gas should be used as a transport fuel when petrol and diesel become prohibitive. Oops the government has been flogging it overseas at cheap prices. Perhaps we'll have to drive and deliver stuff a lot lot less.

Taswegian: "This raises questions as to how forward thinking is the free market system."

I have seen some examples of the free market system being able to price in future events, but surely the GFC made it obvious to everyone it has some huge blind spots. The GFC also demonstrated that if we start believing the markets have some magical ability to see into those blind spots we can be in for a world of pain.

Which is another way of saying I would not trust market predictions as far as I could kick them.

As for electric cars: they have a range of about 200 km, which will work fine in the cities. I don't know what the farmers on their tractors will for fuel though, nor the airlines. I guess they will be replying the electric cars in the cities to cushion the blow for a while.

If we might leave the transportation of goods, agricultural machinery and chemicals, and long-distance air travel for those more well-informed than myself, human-powered light-weight pedal cars could make good use of the wheel as well as combatting epidemic obesity for quite a significant component of our daily commuting, and coupled with small, efficient electric motors for heavy loads, and hill climbs, still achieve fairly adequate speeds between traffic lights in the cities. Not much different to today's peak hour traffic if smaller, lighter, bicycle-style four-wheelers of under 100kg were more the standard than the massive hulks that we are still driving around in thesedays.

Perhaps the road toll might also be reduced if there could be some sort of regressive evolution back to the alternatives that never happened since Henry Ford et al. ? Getting hit by a car that weighs 5-10% of what we have now might not be quite as intrusive on one's vitality, but this is an alternative to oil, rather than a way to barrel more of it.