Gas Price Check...

[Vampiro69 0]

Yesterday it was $4.16 and today it dropped to $4.09. Remember this is the highest that is smack dab in the middle of the Bakken oil formation with 15 active wells around a 15 mile radius.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

They're saying $7 a gallon gas based on $200 a barrel for oil by 2010 which will lead to 10 million fewer cars on the road than there are right now since those people will ditch their cars and switch to the wonderful thing called mass transit*.

 

*Mass transit not available in all areas, check availability, fares and schedules before ditching your car.

 

The only mass transit we have here is buses which run on biodiesel (I think), and I wonder if they'll be able to afford to run buses if it costs that much to fuel one (since biodiesel isn't that much cheaper than regular).

 

Also, the coming problem: HOW WILL THE KIDS GET TO SCHOOL? The county here is already facing a shortage of funding for next years fuel bill for county buses and some solutions being thrown around include having the kids walk to school (ha, they might get adbucted!), picked up in a central location (talk about an all you can molest child buffet!), parents having to pay a monthly fee for their kid to ride the bus (can't see that flying) or even, God forbid Parents having to take their own kids to school. The one radical idea is cutting the school week to 4 days and adding 80 minutes to each day. sorta like government agencies are contemplating. It might work for kids, but for adults cutting back one day and giving them an extra day off means theyll just drive around in their free time instead of to work which will probably consume more gas in the long run..

[Twisted Intestine 0]

 

Way of the future, or to the scrap yard?

[Guest Vitamin X]

Also, the coming problem: HOW WILL THE KIDS GET TO SCHOOL?

 

Well, for starters, they can ride a bike there. http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/ is a website for an organization that has various branches set up that's helping communities organize safer routes to school; according to them a great majority of kids before 1980 walked or biked to school and that number has been drastically reduced since then; they're just trying to reverse that trend now in the face of rising gas prices.

[Dobbs 3K 0]

Well, of course there's the issue that in places like here in Wisconsin, it's not realistic or healthy for a kid to walk or bike to school from like November through March, which means you still have to deal with roughly half the school year.

[Guest Vitamin X]

Which makes perfect sense, of course. Even here in the Pacific NW with the torrential rains and occasionally fairly chilly weather, it's not particularly healthy. I figure that if you have busses running at that time, but not at any other time, it makes more sense.

 

Or you could shift summer vacation to winter vacation. I know they're instituting year-round schooling for some kids, so going to school in the summer isn't that crazy of an idea for many people. Either way, I think kids getting to school is the least of our gas worries- with the amount of kids getting online these days, I think a lot of classes could shift online as well, even for kids, and that would solve some problems as well. There are solutions here which don't have to involve driving.

[Dobbs 3K 0]

True.

 

You know, I hardly ever catch Glenn Beck, but saw last night he had this video showing US politicians talking about "ending dependence on foreign oil" going all the way back to Jimmy Carter. Both Republicans and Democrats. Pretty funny/sad at the same time. What was interesting was that they kept showing the price of a barrel of oil, and how it actually dropped by like fifteen bucks, going FORWARD, in a 10 year timespan.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

The better part of his show last night was the fact that despite a record number of passengers last month (Im assuming May), Amtrak lost the most money in its history, because Amtrak isn't set up to make money like a normal business. They're getting bailed out again with $15 billion over the next 5 years after having been bailed out with $30 billion since 1971. It was mentioned that its cheaper and faster to fly first class from Florida to California than it is to ride Amtrak to and from those destinations, and every mile traveled by an Amtrak passenger costs taxpayers 60 cents.

 

And this is what they want people to switch to instead of driving cars? A truly brilliant plan!

[Guest Vitamin X]

Yeah, but if there was more rail in place, Amtrak would be a better solution. I was looking at prices and schedules recently for a round-trip to San Francisco from here, and while the price was pretty good, even for 4th of July weekend (just ~$150 last I checked), the trip would take 17 hours. Now, I wouldn't mind it normally, except that if I just took I-5 straight down driving, the trip would take only 9 hours. I won't even get into how people have a rough time of it going cross-country; hell, we went into it earlier in this thread. The train experience IS much more pleasurable though, and there's less hassle getting on a train and all that than having to get to the airport early as hell to get through all the damn security.

 

We simply need way more rail in place, and high-speed, economical solutions that don't involve ridiculous amounts of fuel wasted on airplane trips. One of the more ridiculous things I've seen are airplane trips from Portland to Eugene, or things like Los Angeles to San Diego, I'm sure even airplane trips from Baltimore to D.C. are commonplace as well. Portland-Eugene is an hour and a half drive, or a couple hours by train, btw.

[Dandy 0]

Perhaps I am missing something, but I thought it was pointed out that prices were low at Amtrak because taxpayers are funding their losses? More rails would most likely just cause the monetary bail out to go up. Also, where would the money come from to build the necessary rails to make a big difference? I don't think the ends justify the means in this scenario.

 

Some of those short plane rides are a necessity due to the size of an airport and the trips available from each airport. Now obviously, a large airport to a large airport is not the same as what I am talking about, per se.

[RepoMan 0]

We're subsidizing the fuck out the airlines, but because it's corporate welfare to private institutions, no one crying about taxpayer's money. We should have been investing a shit load of public dollars in stuff like Amtrak and public transit a long time. People should also think of money spent on road construction and maintenance as subsidies for the automotive industry. Passenger rail in Europe, which is very popular, could not survive without government subsidies.

 

Like most Americans, I live in an area with very poor public transportation and suburban sprawl. I’m going to have to deal with the absurdity of driving my lone self in an one ton car just to get to work and grad school for the foreseeable future. As many have noted, we’ve been talking about our dependency on oil (at least of the foreign variety) for decades. This situation has been totally foreseeable for a long time, but we’ve been too stubborn to change our lifestyles. The transition is going to be WAY more painful than it ever should if we had real leaders who could look past an election cycle.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Gas Prices Put the Crunch on RealStupid People

 

I dont care if they guy is going to law school, You have to be stupid to drive 5 hours a day and spend $500 a week on gas and not try and figure out some alternative solution to driving 270 miles a day when gas is over $4 a gallon. I dont want to read about you and your sob story..wah wah wah.

 

Dude could get a fucking apartment to spend the week in for his self (and go home on the weekends) for less than the $2,000 a month he's paying for gas.

 

 

 

 

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Now

 

Gas prices are causing old folks to starve

 

In 6 months

 

"Natural Gas prices are causing old folks to freeze to death"

 

Also, I wasnt driving when the National Speed Limit was in effect but the talks about reinstating it again have me wondering if you're caught speeding with it in effect if its a federal crime or not..

 

I think what will happen, and it will suck, is that despite no need for rationing on the supply side, gas rationing will probably happen sometime next year. If we artificially nuke demand for gas overnight, the prices will drop which will be great, but of course..yeah..you'll be limited on the amount of gas you can buy.

[Ketamine Disaster 0]

When you have nowhere to go, it's easy to save on gas.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

The Mythical $100 fill up has arrived!

 

For people who drive 8 mpg SUVs that have near 30 + gallon tanks..pft

 

I filled up my Yaris last week with 8 gallons of gas at 1/4 full for $32.

 

oooh:

 

Families that were accustomed to the convenience of sport utility vehicles are having to cut back as well. Colleen Hammond of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, loves packing her three kids and all their soccer gear into her 2000 GMC Yukon XL. But she hates paying $160 to fill the 38.5-gallon tank. Last month, she parked the Yukon in her driveway and borrowed her friend’s Toyota Land Cruiser.

 

“I don’t know if it gets better gas mileage, but I like her car because it costs $100 to fill it,” said Ms. Hammond, 40. “I think $100 for a tank of gas is cheap now.

 

She upgraded from a Yukon XL to a Land Cruiser..but the Land Cruiser gets worse MPG (18 vs 16). LOL

[EricMM 0]

Ah the illusion of frugality from a smaller tank.

 

Major facepalm...

[Perfxion 0]

The people around here I know with the full size Chevy Pick up/SUV need it for cargo room and towing. I also seen some get those things up to 25 miles per gallon. She should be glad she doesn't have the 99 model diesel. That shit is 160 a pop at 9 miles per gallon. Sad thing is some families need a large SUV, how else do you move 6 kids with stuff around? It is still funny seeing people blame others in their "urban assault vehicle" as the reason for the problem. Some of them need the room for travel and are being just as screwed as the rest of America.

 

For my gas solution, I am looking for a cruiser motorcycle now. They get about 45 to 50 mpg and would be bad ass driving. 10 dollar fill up wouldn't be bad either. Because of cost, I am seeing more and more on the road and the funniest thing is seeing people going to a 9 to 5 on a bike with suit jacket folded up on the back fender.

[EricMM 0]

Some do, most generally don't.

 

I would say the ratio of full to empty escalades I've seen, is closer to 1:20 than 1:10.

[Guest Tzar Lysergic]

It's tornado season! Time to make those gas prices seem insignifigant with a truck full of fucked up trees!

[Perfxion 0]

Escalades and H2s can cost upwards of 65k. Anyone who can afford that, plus the insurance can sure as hell afford the gas. If they wanted a cheaper SUV, get the Tahoe(same engine, transmission, frame and body as the escalades) and save the 30K, which would pay for the gas and then some.

[EricMM 0]

You're missing the point, kindof.

[Kristianna 0]

I paid 4.01 per gallon this morning, and given my 13 gallon tank, it was a cool 52 bucks. I suppose I can afford that, but I sure as fuck don't like it!

[geniusMoment 0]

4.29 a gallon today in Cincy. BOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Hawk 34 0]

Where are you getting gas? I just filled up 2 hours ago and it was 3.95.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Here we have a Wawa station that offers gas at 4.05/gallon. Drive two miles up Route 115 and you'll find a station by the I-80 interchange that charges $4.29.

[treble 0]

Also, a gas station with no pumps.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Also, a gas station with no pumps.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Gas here is still $3.89-$3.91 with the $3.89 station having signs up all over the place stating gas is 5 cents cheaper with cash. The lines there are too long for me to wait about 20 minutes (since people have to go in and pay first) to save 56 cents though.

[geniusMoment 0]

Where are you getting gas? I just filled up 2 hours ago and it was 3.95.

I live in Northern Kentucky now, I got an apartment in Park Hills overlooking Cincy (it's easy for my girlfriend as now she doesn't need to get on the expressway to go to work and I don't mind driving into Cincy). Just filled up at the BP on the corner of Dixie Highway and Kyles Lane for 4.29.

[Guest Vitamin X]

Because of cost, I am seeing more and more on the road and the funniest thing is seeing people going to a 9 to 5 on a bike with suit jacket folded up on the back fender.

Not anywhere near as ridiculous as seeing some douchebag in his car paying for gas, insurance, registration, and parking (not to mention looking for a spot) and still hauling their fat asses to their workplaces slower than the guy on his bike.

 

Bike vs. Car vs. Transit!