Atlanta Drivers Twittering--Just to Find Gas

Our gassy peers at Jalopnik were shocked to find that social networking/microblogging service Twitter was being used for something other than subscribing to their news feed. Indeed, gasoline-starved Atlanta drivers have been pinging each other and tagging posts to point fellow drivers to stations with fresh supplies of fuel.

Jalopnik comments that "Atlanta has been running on empty for about three weeks now," and says some drivers have waited in lines up to an hour long at the stations that still have reserves to sell. They also note that Governor Sonny Perdue delayed lifting low-sulfur fuel requirements for Georgia when the crisis loomed, compounding the problem and lengthening the gas lines.

To help Atlanta Twitterers locate gas in the suburban sprawlopolis, users of the service have been tagging posts with "#atlgas."

The city's gas shortages are expected to last into next week, as a result of hurricanes Ike and Gustav slowing supplies to the southeast.--Colin Mathews