Americans are already driving less, and going forward.

Many will have to make major changes in their daily lives to adjust to these record high gas prices.

Here's one person who illustrates how the highest-ever gas prices are changing the daily routines.

George Kovacik, who now only rarely drives to work in Houston, is switching to the bus.

"I was filling up seven to eight times a month," said Kovacik, of the Methodist Hospital of Houston.

"Now just three. It's made a huge difference."

Gas prices are crushing many small businesses, too.

Debbie Mahler's technology company in Illinois had to stop making house calls to fix people's computers.

"Well, at this point it's all but crippled us," stated Mahler, with Mice Training & Technology.

We may see much more of this given that the average price of gas has gone up more than 64 cents over the past year, a 22-percent increase.

"And the real bad news is, once the summer driving season gets underway, these prices are going to get higher," explained Stephen Leeb, author of The Oil Factor.

"And I think America needs to steel themselves to at least four dollars a gallon."

What's behind this?

Oil.

The price has nearly doubled in a year.

In part because investors who are worried about a shaky stock market are putting their money into the oil market.

Perhaps driving the price up to 30 or 40 dollars a barrel.

"You want to be in oil, you want to be in gold, you want to be in grains, you want to be in commodities," said Stephen Schork, President of the Schork Group.

There's also a huge supply and demand problem.

While people in India and China are using more oil, there are questions whether major oil producing countries are willing or able to quench the thirst.

On April 22, Mexico said its production dropped this year because of dwindling reserves.

And last week Russia said its production probably peaked last year.

"So you have this horrible combination of increasing demand and supply that' s basically stagnant," stated Leeb.

"You add it up, higher prices and really no end in sight."

On April 21, crude oil set another trading record, closing just above $117 a barrel.