Out of the blue, Amtrak has decided to allow Americans in on the big rail pass scheme that's usually offered only to international visitors. We don't know why (we don't even know when Amtrak will arrive at the station, so how could we know about its business practices?), but the loosening of the rules can translate into some hefty savings off the usual rates. Just in time, too, for car-weary budgets.

Up to now, the USA Rail Pass was only offered to visitors from abroad. Americans who wanted the discount found themselves out of luck, so most of us didn't know much about it.

The USA Rail Pass works a lot like the more famous Eurail passes. It's good for a defined length of time (it comes in 15-day/$389, 30-day/$579, and 45-day/$749 varieties) and you can take a set number of trips during that period (8 for 15 days, 12 for 30, and $18 in 45 days).

The pass can be used both on trains and on the connecting Amtrak Thruway bus system. It can also be used anytime as long as you start using it within six months of buying it. There are a few notable exceptions, though. You can't use it for the swishy Acela service in the Northeast (although you can use it for regular train service serving the same cities), and the Auto Train to or from Florida (on which you also bring your car) is also out.

It's not that I object to paying for web access while I'm traveling. Yes, I emphatically believe that it enhances a place's image to offer Web access for free, the way running water and heat are part of the package. Still, connectivity costs money to install and maintain, so I can deal with renting as long as the fee is reasonable.

What stinks is how it's dispensed. The billing increments are usually completely disconnected from the reality of how people actually use the web on the road. And that turns a sensible fee into something idiotic.

Hotels. Every place I check into offers the web these days. The smart ones, such as chains like Hyatt Place and Hampton Inn and nearly every privately owned hotel, offer it for free. They see it as an easy way to bait the hook. And I bite. I admit I am more likely to choose a hotel with free access than one that makes me pay. I know I'm not alone in this. But the ones that charge do so stupidly. Access comes in 24-hour increments there.

Now, think about this. You're going to check in at around 4 p.m. at the earliest. And you're going to leave at around 10 a.m. in the morning if you're lucky. That's about 18 hours. Business travelers will spend even less time than that in their rooms.

Every empty seat in every car clogging up the freeway in the morning is an opportunity lost: an opportunity for the driver to reduce the cost of his/her commute, for the traffic congestion to lessen, for the environment to breath a little easier. At present, we use only 15% of our car passenger carrying capacity in this country. If only there were a way for a driver and others sharing the same destination to match up....

This is the concept behind startup Avego. The internet site, currently recruiting beta testers, pairs up drivers with seats to spare with those willing to share the cost of the trip. Drivers use their iPhone and its GPS feature to register their location and destination. Avego attempts to hook them up via voice response, texting, or web interfaces with like-minded passengers. The passengers can use any cell phone; only the drivers need an iPhone.

Avego also calculates and apportions the passenger's share of the commute cost beforehand. Companies and other communities of users can create their own circles within Avego. The site also gathers feedback to identify and avoid inharmonious matches, and allows both driver and passenger to limit selections to those of his/her own sex.

Drivers in areas with high-occupancy vehicle lanes might find this service particularly useful in allowing them access to this time-saving turf. Avego, and the similar Pickup Pal, could really be useful if enough people embrace it. Critical mass is the key, and if this or a similar system were to click with the public, we could dramatically drop our energy use and pad our pocketbooks.

Register here if you're interested in being a beta tester.

Read also:

Commute for free- become a slug
Pickup Pal: Thumbing a ride in the 21st Century

I sense yet another rising trend thanks to the rising price of gas: pedicabs.

You probably know what I'm talking about, even if you don't know the word -- if you've seen someone pedaling on a bicycle-like vehicle, pulling a few people behind him -- you've likely seen a pedicab.

Half bicycle, half taxicab, these things have been popular around the world for decades (and its man-powered predecessor, the rickshaw, for centuries before that) but I'm seeing more articles in the newspaper about them, and a friend of mine recently sent me the link of a friend of his, who just started a pedicab business in Chicago.

Finally someone is doing something other than just complaining about high gas prices. We can complain all we want, speculate about who is making money at our expense, and try to advance silly conspiracy theories all we want. But none of that helps consumers deal with rising gas prices.

But some companies and government agencies are actually doing something about high gas prices. They're offering their employees the option of four-day work weeks to save gas. How cool is that? Someone willing to act instead of complain?

And before you dismiss this as something that won't make a difference, think again. Reducing the work week by one day will help employees save 20% of the gas they'd otherwise use to go back and forth to week. That's a pretty good savings for many employees.

Now consumers just need to embrace the idea of saving gas in their personal lives a little more. As much as everyone complains about the high gas prices, I've seen no shortage of cars on the streets on the weekends. Maybe a little more staying at home, walking, or biking would do us all a little good.

Tracy L. Coenen, CPA, MBA, CFE performs fraud examinations and financial investigations for her company Sequence Inc. Forensic Accounting, and is the author of Essentials of Corporate Fraud.

The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) recently ran an article about the decision of some local government's to switch their employees to a four-day work week to save them some of the cost of driving back and forth to work. An official from Oakland County, Michigan estimates such a move will save its 800 employees over $300,000 a year.

Could such a change help you offset spiraling transportation costs? If you drive 40 miles each day, round trip, at a cost of $.55 cents a mile (gas plus other expenses including depreciation), you'll spend $110. A four-day week would cut off $22, or almost $100 a month.

While companies are unlikely to hand out raises to their employees to offset gas increases, perhaps they might be willing to consider a four day week, or one day a week of telecommuting. Certainly, if it becomes a trend in the public sector, more companies will at least put the idea on the table. Perhaps you should at least broach the topic with your boss. Who knows? You might free up some Fridays and save some gas.

Unless you burn it up going to the golf course.