WIRE:03/22/2000 14:17:00 ET AAA pushes fuel conservation amid record prices NEW YORK (Reuters) - Spurred by record high gasoline prices, leading U.S. driving organization the American Automobile Association (AAA)Wednesday released a set of guidelines for fuel conservation -- a step which in the past was only taken during wartime and oil embargoes. "AAA recognizes the steep increase in gasoline prices during the last 12 months has created hardships on millions of American motorists," the 98-year old association said in a statement.

Among the fuel saving suggestions, all of which can be viewed on the association's web page www.aaa.com/news, are driving and accelerating slower, keeping tires well inflated, joining car pools, and shopping around for the lowest pump prices.

The last time AAA released fuel conservation guidelines to help drivers manage high fuel costs was just after the Gulf War in 1991. Before that AAA released them during both of the 1970's oil embargoes and during World War Two.

The national average price of gasoline at the pumps, when not adjusted for inflation, is now higher than ever before at roughly $1.54 a gallon, according to AAA's latest gasoline price survey released March 14. That's more than 15.5 cents a gallon higher than the previous record reached in 1981 just after the Iran hostage crisis.

The gasoline spike is attributed to a global oil supply squeeze orchestrated by members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other oil producing nations.

OPEC is slated to meet March 27 to consider easing the supply squeeze by pushing their oil production back up, though the AAA said it is doubtful prices will come down before the height of summer driving season.

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-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), March 22, 2000