Area drivers face rising gas prices

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February 18, 2012

By Denise Richardson Staff Writer The Daily Star Sat Feb 18, 2012, 02:30 AM EST

Gasoline prices are on the rise again, making motorists dig deeper into their pockets to pay the total on the pump.

John Whritner, a contractor from Hobart, said he uses $25 worth of gasoline daily to travel to and from work in the Oneonta area. He was adding $100 of gasoline to his vehicle's tank at the Quickway near the Leslie G. Foster Highway, where gas was $3.79 a gallon Thursday.

"I do shop around," Whritner said while standing near a pump. "That's why I'm here."

The station has the lowest price in the vicinity, Whritner said Thursday, and he could use his credit card and pay the same price as if he were paying cash. At a station in Hobart operated by the same company, the cost per gallon is 10 cents higher, plus an additional cost for using a credit card, he said.

Nationally, the average price of gasoline Thursday was $3.52 per gallon, the highest on record this time of year, the Associated Press reported, and the price could climb to $4.25 a gallon by late April. Gasoline prices could be a threat to the U.S. economy, particularly as Iran threatens to cut exports, the AP said.

"I don't understand why they're so high," Garth Gerowe of Oneonta said Thursday, as he put $20 worth of gasoline into his car at the Quickway before going to work as a bartender at Applebee's restaurant at Southside Mall.

The price of a gallon of gasoline is driven by several factors, Michael Butler, regional president of AAA New York in Oneonta, said Thursday.

"It's supply and demand and anticipation of what the world is doing," Butler said. Other influencing factors include manufacturing costs and the demands for heating fuel, he said, and locally, the price between stations in Oneonta at different ends of town could be the result of delivery services and distance.

AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report on Thursday listed the national average cost of regular gasoline at $3.52 a gallon. That compared with $3.48 a week ago, $3.38 a month ago and $3.13 a year ago.

AAA's report for the Albany and Binghamton areas shows average costs differ by about 2 cents during the last year for a gallon of regular gasoline. The current average for the Albany-Schenectady-Troy region Thursday was $3.81 per gallon, compared to $3.75 a week ago, $3.61 a month ago and $3.35 a year ago.

The highest recorded national average price was $4.11 a gallon for regular on July 17, 2008, AAA said, and statewide, the highest recorded average was $4.23 per gallon on June 21, 2008.

At about 4:30 p.m. Thursday, traffic into the Quickway station was steady. Across the street at the Hess station, gasoline was $3.83 per gallon and fewer cars were pulling up to the pumps.

Whritner, of Whritner Builders, said he can't increase the prices he charges for contracting services because of the struggling economy, which means his business absorbs rising fuel costs and withholds pay raises for his workers. Albert Dawson of Cherry Valley, while pumping $40 of gasoline into his pickup truck at the Quickway, said he checks out prices during his travels from home to work at Cooperstown Dreams Park in Hartwick and throughout the area as a scrap dealer. Last week, regular gas at a station in Richfield was $3.79 a gallon, he said, while at a station in Ilion, gas was $3.55 per gallon, which meant a worthwhile drive from home to fill the tank.

Supplies are sufficient so that the consumer price should be $3 per gallon, according to Dawson, who said the state should regulate supply.

Butler said motorists, as individuals, can make a difference in how much they spend on gasoline through using common sense and maintaining their vehicles.

Shopping around for prices can ease gas expenses, Butler said, but he suggested calling stations to find out prices instead of driving around. Other cost-saving measures while driving include avoiding rapid starts, coasting in gear, not exceeding 65 mph and consolidating trips, he said.

Motorists also can save on gasoline expenses by maintaining their vehicles, including following recommendations in the owner's manual for oil changes. Air pressure in tires, which changes with temperatures, can influence a vehicle's gasoline use, he said, and spending a couple of dollars on a manual tire gauge may translate into gas savings.