The cost of a shuttle launch is several hundred million dollars. While this sounds like a lot to an individual, it must be remembered that we live in a society with a $10+ trillion economy. How much did it cost Spain in 1492 to sail the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria? As I recall, Queen Isabella had to pawn off some of her royal jewels to pay for the trip. Although expensive, the trip proved to be well worth the money spent. Within several years, Spain's leap of faith transformed it into the superpower of the 16th century.

While I agree that the cost per mission can probably be brought down to some degree, I believe that space travel will be fairly expensive for a long time to come. If our space program had an annual budget of $20-$25 billion a year, coupled with a one step at a time approach, then there's nothing that we couldn't accomplish.