Gas price coaster irritaes drivers
By Bonnie Edwards
Published in News on June 4, 2007 1:46 PM
The gas price roller coaster ride took some new dips and turns last week as it continues to wreak havoc on motorists' emotions and wallets.
Gasoline prices have dropped a bit last week, hovering around $3.
Timothy Cavenaugh, who had stopped at the Arrington Comco, said the lower prices are no consolation to him. They're still too high, he said.
"We have to pay, no matter what the price. If they charge $5 a gallon, we've got to pay," he said. "And as the gas prices go up, we can look for everything to go up. We'll pay, because we like being able to go and do. ... Bottom line is we'll pay it. We'll gripe about it, though."
Estelle Jennings of Goldsboro said gas prices shot up years ago.
"It's the same story as it was years ago," she said while filling her tank at a Kangaroo on U.S. 70 West. "It will be the same now. It all goes into a black hole."
Another problem is Detroit, she said. Back in the 1970s, the automobile manufacturers promised to make more fuel-efficient cars.
"And what did we get? Hummers and SUVs. That's why we're all buying foreign cars," she said.
Nineteen-year-old Kristin Whaley of Goldsboro was getting gas at another Kangaroo on U.S. 70, getting ready to go to Campbell University.
"Usually I only fill up once a week. Now, it's every other day," said Miss Whaley, who is attending both Campbell and Wayne Community College this summer.
It used to take Maria Flores only $25 to fill up the tank on her Honda, but now she pumps in $30, and it's still not full.
Ricco Raynor of Goldsboro is in the same boat.
"I've got a truck, and I can't hardly drive it. I have to drive my beat-up Honda most of the time," said Raynor, whose Honda gets excellent gas mileage -- about 27 miles to the gallon on the highway and around 18 or 20 in town.
"That's much better than the truck," he said.
It's taking more lawns to help James Hines of Seven Springs make ends meet in his landscaping business. He cuts grass for a living, and gasoline prices are cutting him deep.
The prices need to come down some more, he said while gassing up his riding lawnmower at the Friendly Mart on Indian Springs Road.
"It seems like it takes more. It's so high, you don't get anything for your money," he said. "You have to go up on your prices to cut the grass, gas is so high."
Gas prices are still a bargain, Richard White of Wallace said while he was gassing up his SUV at the fairgrounds Citgo on U.S. 117.
He explained that, compared to what you paid 15 years ago related to the price of a car and the paycheck you made then, gas is a bargain, because the price is set at a percentage of the Gross National Product. And the percentage is smaller than it was 15 years ago, he said.
"It has no effect on my driving," he said. "I'm about to take a 2,000-mile drive. It's still cheaper than flying."
It still took more than a few dollars to fill his tank.
"But I hate to pay $52 to fill me up," he said.