Bought gas yesterday in IA at $1.83. I was beginning to think that $1.99 gas was just a psychological number, but it's beginning to dip lower now again. But what about plane tickets, I thought it was gas prices that drove their hike in ticket prices of late? I guess it will be a while before we see those prices change:
Cheap oil, which this week closed below $50 a barrel for the first time in nearly 6 years, has been a boon for beleaguered motorists who are enjoying lower prices at the pump. But will airfares follow the same downward spiral? The short answer is: Don’t hold your breath.
Jet fuel, airlines’ biggest expense, has fallen by roughly a third over the past year. Meanwhile, airfares have continued to climb, along with airlines’ profits. So what gives? There are several reasons for staying the course on price, according to airline executives: First, airlines that have put big bets on future oil prices say that being locked into those investments doesn’t allow for short-term changes in how they charge customers. Others say there’s no telling what will happen to oil prices in future, and that sudden price changes can hurt airlines long-term. And some say too many consumers are clamoring for plane tickets to justify dropping prices—even when costs are down.
Flying may start to get cheaper in six months or so, when airlines’ fuel investments change, according to one global industry airline association. But you wouldn’t be able to tell from the way airline CEOs are talking.
Well since Iowa is raising their gas tax .10/gallon I think I am going to definitely start filling up on the Nebraska side of the river. I currently live in Bellevue and work downtown and get gas in CB. But after the increase, there is no reason to get gas there anymore as it will be cheaper in Omaha. (Actually as of right now it already is....most stations in Omaha are $2.18 while the ones on Broadway in CB are $2.19)
I wonder how many others are going to do the same thing. I know they had a guy on the news last night that said he was going to start buying it in Nebraska because of the same reason. Overall it won't really take away from spending in Iowa, but on the borders, I am sure there will be a hit.
I am always amazed when people worry about saving 10cents a gallon on gas. Most of the people who gripe about it spend more money on coffee and bottled water every day. If I am so poor that I have to save $1.50 on a tank of gas, then it is time for me to really take a good look ay my expenses.
EastCB wrote:I am always amazed when people worry about saving 10cents a gallon on gas. Most of the people who gripe about it spend more money on coffee and bottled water every day. If I am so poor that I have to save $1.50 on a tank of gas, then it is time for me to really take a good look ay my expenses.
My wife and I both drive over 20 miles each way to work each day and have to fill up once per week, so .10/gallon can add up to about $3.50 per week. Which for an entire year is close to $200. When you are trying to maximize your budget you look at any way that you can save money if you want to be able to afford some other things.
I for one, would much rather spend that extra $200 going out to eat or going to a game or something.
I agree with you BUT that was not the point of my post. There are many other ways to save every week but gas prices get everyone riled up. No one ever complains about the cost of the things They decide to spend money on. Only things that are required, like gas.
I wonder how many others are going to do the same thing.
I have a standing breakfast group in CB each weekend and I almost always fill up or top off.
I think I got the last of the $1.99 last weekend. Lately the stations on south 24th. have been the lowest. The ones up around Harrah's have been the same as Omaha prices.
Coyote wrote:The price jumped up to $2.18 but there seems to be no reason why it went up .20 in the past few weeks, except for futures speculations...
On the news, they were using the excuses of switching to summer blended fuel and problems with refineries. There is no current problem with supply of crude oil though. Crude is actually priced under $50/barrel, so with prices like that gas should be in the $1.50 range. But as they are stating the refining is the biggest problem.
Coyote wrote:The price jumped up to $2.18 but there seems to be no reason why it went up .20 in the past few weeks, except for futures speculations...
On the news, they were using the excuses of switching to summer blended fuel and problems with refineries. There is no current problem with supply of crude oil though. Crude is actually priced under $50/barrel, so with prices like that gas should be in the $1.50 range. But as they are stating the refining is the biggest problem.
Unions. There is a labor fight going on right now. Also the fire at the big refinery of Chevron has not helped either.
Coyote wrote:I heard that the Iowa $0.10 tax increase begins tomorrow, making it .06 cheaper in NE, but we are now looking into raising our gas taxes...
More and more states are now. I think states are realizing that an actual transportation funding solution at the federal level is not going to happen anytime soon.
Sounds like possibly 2 more years of oil trading 50-60 a barrel, so I'm betting most states will find a way to sneak in additional gas taxes
Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery. - Winston Churchill
Coyote wrote:I heard that the Iowa $0.10 tax increase begins tomorrow, making it .06 cheaper in NE, but we are now looking into raising our gas taxes...
More and more states are now. I think states are realizing that an actual transportation funding solution at the federal level is not going to happen anytime soon.
they have all the funding they need, if they could manage a budget.
It's assissine to be a proponent for additional taxes, when being a proponent for smarter spending is the solution.
EDIT: i misunderstood your post, and thought you were suggesting the fed needs more revenue. My bad
Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery. - Winston Churchill
OWH did a really good job with their article on the gas tax today. Obviously the rhetoric for raising taxes is always going to be negative, but we really are coming to a crossroads in terms of our statewide infrastructure. If we don't want to pay for it all then so be it, but there are going to have to be sacrifices made then. Thats what so many people don't get. They will |expletive| and moan about things like potholes and widening streets or repaving them and then cry bloody murder when the state tries to find a funding source for everything the people find important.
Taxes like gas taxes are OK as long as they get spent for what they are collected for. Absolutely have hit the wall on gas taxes being used for bike trails, tennis courts, and all the other non road item that some pressure group got through the unicam.
If you have a bridge problem, let's pony up and when we are done, let's stop ponying up.
Last thing. Our state has a horrible record of undercharging fees for items that are revenue generating and capable of being supported away from general funds and lowering the drain on general funds.
This needs to be stopped. Start with Newborn Screening and move through licensure fees, and the game and parks department.
Scrap the gas tax and find another funding source for road work. Gasoline tax revenue is dependent on fuel demand and it's ludicrous to have such a funding mechanism with car and trucks on average are using less gasoline. Unless we start putting boxes in cars and charge people for mileage, there has to be a better way to fund roadwork.
Also, everyone is complaining about the gas tax not keeping up with inflation. What's road spending like adjusted for inflation over the past 25 years or so?
Getting rid of the tax means that you either go for toll roads, or you increase sales tax. Our income tax rate is too high compared to neighboring states. Cant go up as this would further weaken our ability to attract new industry and keep what we have.
I would first cleanse the budget of general fund bleeding points. First, those programs that could be self funding, then ultimately hitting state aid to schools. Funds that have for a while now, been effectively welfare for dysfunctional school districts.
jessep28 wrote:Scrap the gas tax and find another funding source for road work. Gasoline tax revenue is dependent on fuel demand and it's ludicrous to have such a funding mechanism with car and trucks on average are using less gasoline. Unless we start putting boxes in cars and charge people for mileage, there has to be a better way to fund roadwork.
Also, everyone is complaining about the gas tax not keeping up with inflation. What's road spending like adjusted for inflation over the past 25 years or so?
At some point, the gas tax may no longer be a practical user fee for road funding, but that's decades away, at the soonest. Alternative-fuel cars (e.g. electric) are not going to constitute a significant proportion of driven miles for quite a while. As long as the gas tax rate is periodically adjusted to match increases in the vehicle fleet average fuel economy (and inflation), it will continue to be a simple, effective funding source. It will continue to incentivise more fuel-efficient vehicles in a more capitalistic manner than the federal requirements that have been used in the past.
By the time electric vehicles make up a significant portion of cars on the road (if they do), there will be other options to charge appropriate user fees. If people continue becoming comfortable sharing their constant location and personal data (as many are with social networking already), the privacy barrier to tracking miles driven may be so low it's a non-issue. I'm not advocating it, just looking at it realistically.
I thought the story in the World Herald earlier this week quoted that gas prices could fall close to 50 cents. I haven't seen gas go down at all this week after it did over last weekend. Most stations in the Omaha area are still at $2.36. With the price of oil and the refinery in IN back on, gas should be at or below $2 like many other states in the country.
Coyote wrote:Those were my exact thoughts... why is NE/IA not seeing these falling prices... yet
I am sure that it will go down mid-month, after the holiday weekend and when they switch to the winter blend.
We were on vacation in Door County, WI last month and one night I got gas it was $2.57 and the next morning at the exact same location it went up to $3.38. Glad we didn't see that big of a jump here.
Drivers can find gas below $2 a gallon in 17 states, according to price tracker GasBuddy.com.
Cities where the average price is already below $2 include St. Louis, Toledo and Birmingham. The statewide average in South Carolina is already below $2, and six other states are poised to cross that mark soon.