How Are You Coping With Gas Prices?
Another landmark is about to be reached in the ongoing fuel crisis. At $3.95/gallon as of May 12, the city of San Francisco looks like it will become the first in the country to record an average gasoline price over $4/gallon for regular unleaded. Of course, this is nothing new to truckers, farmers and other users of diesel fuel who have been paying well over $4/gallon for months now.
And worse, prices can only be expected to continue their upward climb as the season of high demand gets into full swing in the coming months.
A recent proposal by Senator John McCain, supported by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, would suspend the 18.4-cent/gallon federal gas tax between Memorial Day and Labor Day. By most accounts, the plan would only encourage more consumption, thus increasing the price of gas overall, and could have serious repercussions for the nation’s highway infrastructure, which is supported by the gas tax. Further, it’s unlikely the gas tax break would create any significant savings for most motorists,
Meanwhile, everything we buy, from milk and fruit to raw steel, is getting more expensive because it is costing more to transport. At the same time, we have less money to buy these goods because we’re spending more on fuel.
Rising gas prices will also impact the welding industry, from the cost of running gas and diesel generators to the cost of running service and shipping trucks. Small businesses will certainly be the hardest hit by rising prices.
What are your thoughts on the escalating price of gas and diesel fuel? In what ways have you changed your fuel consumption behavior? What do you think is needed to halt the broad economic hardship being caused by fuel prices? Share your thoughts by posting a comment below.
These are the average national gasoline prices for the last 2.5 years. Notice that the price did not drop this last winter the way it did the two previous years.
Average (Not Rated)
May 15th, 2008 at 8:54 am
ooooo, $4.00 a US gallon, in equivalent terms we are paying $4.75 a US gallon for regular and we pump it and refine it here in Alberta Canada. Then again most of it is taxes, coupled to free health care. So I suppose it all works out in the end.
May 15th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
The gas prices must not be hurting people too badly. Every day on the interstate, I see people in large pickups and SUVs going 75+ mph. Personally, I have slowed down to around 60-65mph hoping to make the fuel in my tank last longer.
May 16th, 2008 at 1:26 pm
Tell them tree huggers to back off and let us punch some oil wells
May 17th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
if gas prices hurt people enough then maybe someone out there will figure out a way to convert internal combustion engines to run on another type of fuel. like compressed hydrogen. even if the cost starts out the same or a little higher at first it would be worth it in the end to quit by oil from the people who hate us and would like to blow us up with the money. there has to be another alternative to oil and until it is found and available gas prices will only get worse. i just hope it doesnt have to reach 10 bucks a gallon before it becomes a serious issue. as far as coping with gas prices i used it as an excuse to buy a zx6r motorcycle getting 47 mpg. would rather make a bike payment than pay greedy oil company.
May 20th, 2008 at 9:05 am
What I want to know is why Bio-Diesel is so much more expensive than Dino Diesel. It is cheaper to make, less hazardous, un-taxable (at this time), and readily available. Yet it is running .25 to .36 more than Dino. Personally, I feel that nothing is going to change on the pricing. Until, we start forcing our Senators and Legislators to purchase fuel themselves and we quit paying them.
May 22nd, 2008 at 2:36 pm
It’s interesting that the cost of a barrell has doubled in a year. It’s probably some speculation along with the dropping value of the US dollar–along with growth in global demand. We need more oil. More US oil. We need to hit legislators with it and maybe they will start listening. Just having Congress and the Prez change laws so that we can drill and refine more in the US will knock the speculators out of the picture and the price will drop a lot.
May 22nd, 2008 at 9:02 pm
When I clicked on the link I thought it meant shield gas prices. I use argon and I use a 330 cuft tank, it helps keep the price down somewhat to buy in bulk. As far as gasoline prices go all I can say is welcome to the days past peak oil production. We’ve already burned half of what is out there and now more people than ever before want to burn the last half. So it is simple supply and demand economics. There is a fixed, if not shrinking supply, and an ever growing demand. Of course prices are going to rise. If you don’t like it discover a new fuel. That is what humanity did when the whale oil supply dwindled. Personally I think that high prices might be just the incentive we need to kick the fossil fuel habit. Lord knows nothing else seems to have motivated us in the past 100+ years. I mean we’ve known this day was coming since the 70s. If we don’t find an alternative I suggest watching the movie Max Max to see what things will be like. On the bright side us welders should be in great demand to make all of them radical Mad Max mobiles. So beat the rush and build yours today!
May 23rd, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Conservation is a way to help take the sting out of gastly gas prices. It doesn’t seem to matter diesel or gas its all bad. I personally have 2 vehicles. One large truck and a small high mpg car. I only drive the big rig when I have to tow or haul something. I do 95 % of my driving in the small vehicle. If we decrease our usage by carpooling, appropriate driving tactics (not speeding), bundling our trips, and using an appropriate tool for the task (small cars not trucks or suvs to transport one person) the impact will be less.
For people that spend $600/month (easily done in a suv commuting to work) I would mention that you can buy a new Corolla and put gas in it for less money. You could actually save enough gas money to buy a new second car. Keep the big beast for when you actually need a big beast to drive. In this way we stimulate the american economy by buying cars and decrease our dependence on foriegn oil since we will be using high mpg vehicles not gas guzzling rigs for daily personel commutes. Yes I did drive my big rig to get the miller syncro 250 welder I bought!
My last thought is to go back to childhood and ride a bike to work.
June 23rd, 2008 at 8:53 pm
Unfortunately I drive a Ford Expedition, it’s our only car (we’re looking for a beater with better gas mileage). I hardly go over 60/65 I pick up slow and never floor it etc. It’s actually quite funny to see the frustration on the faces of those behind me. And of course I realize since I make it a point to do the speed limit or below that so many people “fly” only to get to the next light right in-front of me.
Driving the SUV has slowed me down…but the car is great for three carseats and a stroller diaper bag etc.
Gas where I live is about 4.30something to 4.40something, I’m in WA ;(