Gilroy
– Driving to visit her grandchildren in San Diego used to be a
monthly excursion, but these days Jenny De La Cueva stays closer to
her Gilroy home.
”
Now we just can’t afford it,
”
De La Cueva said.
A tank of regular unleaded costs $35 where it used to cost $27,
she said.
Gilroy – Driving to visit her grandchildren in San Diego used to be a monthly excursion, but these days Jenny De La Cueva stays closer to her Gilroy home.
“Now we just can’t afford it,” De La Cueva said.
A tank of regular unleaded costs $35 where it used to cost $27, she said.
Gas prices in Gilroy shattered records Thursday and shot up more than 25 cents in the past month, hovering a few cents above the Bay Area average of $2.38 per gallon of regular unleaded, based on a Dispatch survey of most gas stations in town. It’s not uncommon to see prices go up a couple cents overnight, as they did between Wednesday and Thursday, or even a dime over a weekend.
Donald Padillo was pumping at Costco, one of the cheapest stations in the city, Wednesday afternoon. Formerly of Gilroy, the Los Banos resident said he spends $250 per month on gas, or $50 more than he did at the beginning of summer.
“I commute over the hill, so I fill up every day,” Padillo said. “On the weekends, we won’t come over now, not unless it’s something really important.”
He is using his bike for errands more often, but Padillo said the cost of fuel won’t affect his lifestyle too much: He still plans to visit Monterey and drive to the Bay Area for a concert this weekend.
“We won’t let it stop us from doing what we’ve got to do,” he said.
De La Cueva, who drives a mid-size sedan, said high gas prices have fueled her to use efficiency to save money.
“Whereas before I used to do (errands) randomly, now I plan my route and do all my errands in one trip,” she said.
Gilroy commuters are far from alone in feeling the pinch at the pump, according to a new report by AAA Northern California, which shows that the trend extends to gas prices in Silicon Valley, California, and nation-wide.
Annette Douglas, a Gilroy resident who works in San Jose, took the train from Gilroy into work today – not because gas prices are high, but because her car is in the shop, she said. But she thinks having a broken down car may be a blessing in disguise.
“Yeah, I’d consider taking the train more often,” she said. “It was nice today – no driving, no having to shell out $30 just for a tank of gas that only lasts me half a week anyway. Some of us can’t afford that.”
San Jose matched its old record-high average price of regular unleaded gasoline on Wednesday, said AAA spokesman Sean Comey. Then on Thursday, it was two cents more expensive, to set a new record at $2.34. To give that record figure more perspective, the gallon price was $1.88 exactly one year ago, Comey said.
“The rapid nature, and the extensive increase that we’ve seen over the last couple weeks is very unusual,” Comey said. “It’s unusual to see a price increase of 10 cents or more in the period of a month.”
The most expensive in Northern California is in South Lake Tahoe, where it costs $2.55 per gallon. It’s cheapest in Tracy, at $2.26 per gallon.
Nationwide, folks in Greenville, S.C., are paying the least – $1.83 per gallon – and those in Wiluku, Hawaii, are shelling out the most – $2.66.
And the market appears poised for even more price hikes, Comey said.
Crude oil rose to a record $54.88 a barrel Thursday, after an Energy Department report showed inventories of distillate fuels, including heating oil and diesel, plunged last week. Also, a pipeline explosion in Mexico raised supply fears.
“The main reality-based problem has been the hurricanes in the southeastern United States that have limited production,” Comey said. “The other forces tend to revolve more around anxiety and fear.”
California gas prices are higher than the nationwide average for several reasons, including few supply sources: There are 13 refineries making reformulated gas in the state that must run at near capacity to meet demand.
California’s more stringent environmental regulations also impact gas prices. Some of last summer’s price hikes were attributed to the state’s move toward cleaner fuel.
Added to the higher cost of cleaner fuel are a combined state and local sales and use tax of 7.25 percent, an 18.4 cent-per-gallon federal excise tax, and an 18 cent-per-gallon state excise tax.
As fuel prices gain momentum, so does consumers’ interest in alternative fuel and hybrid cars. Most Toyota dealerships in the country have waiting lists of people wanting to purchase the hybrid Prius. In response, Toyota is stepping up production of the Prius to meet demand, according to its Web site.
A manager at Gilroy Toyota said the dealership at 500 Stutz Way also has a waiting list of about 30, but said the number can be as high as 200 elsewhere. Customers interested in the $25,000 to $28,000 car often cite its 60-miles-per-gallon gas consumption as its most attractive feature, he said.
Other automakers are on the hybrid bandwagon, too, including Honda, which recently introduced its Accord Hybrid that will be available this winter.
To save gas, and money, AAA recommends:
• Avoid luxury gas – Unless your car requires high octane fuel, it’s just a waste of money.
• Shop aggressively – Prices can change overnight, so the cheapest station one day could be the most expensive the next.
• Check your tires – Every pound of pressure lost eats up 2 percent of gas mileage.
