By Lucille Rollins
When the current UP seniors were freshmen, $30 of gas might have gotten you to Vancouver B.C., assuming you had a 15-gallon tank and got around 20 mpg. Now, filling up the tank is painful and $30 will only get you to Seattle.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported that on April 12, 2004, regular unleaded gas was at a West Coast average of $1.98 per gallon. This last week, EIA reported that the average has risen to $3.46. According to Portlandgasprices.com, Shell - the nearest gas station to UP - is selling at $3.67, the highest price in the city.
It just might be that Civics and Jettas are out. For students whose other concerns include bills and food, gas is changing how they live and think, not just how much they drive.
So say hello to Avanti and Mongoose.
Senior Kyle O'Donnell is resisting, though. He may be selling his 1985 Jeep - and its measly 15 to 16 mpg - but he's not trading it in for a sweet ride with two wheels.
"The goal now is to get a fuel-efficient car rather than not driving at all," he said. "Unfortunately, I think cars are a necessary thing, especially in a major metropolitan area like this."
Junior Katie Carlos and senior Mark Himes expressed the same sentiment. Carlos has driven a car the past two years and, although she said the rise in gas prices were expected and have put a damper on how far she drives, she admitted she won't be giving up her car anytime soon.
"But when I graduate, I'd ideally like to take public transportation to work and not have to drive," she said. "It's definitely something I'm looking for."
Himes, whose place of employment is at least 25 miles away, goes through more than one tank a week. He estimated that 1/4 of his paycheck goes to gas.
"If gas got to over five dollars a gallon, I would probably start using mass transit a lot more," he said, "but right now it would take more than an hour to get to where I work."
In years past, O'Donnell drove everywhere without a second thought. He admits that now, however, gas is a constant concern. Every year he's made trips to the coast, but noticed that the number of them has been fewer and fewer.
"Considering how much I spend on gas is significant enough to make me want to walk," he said, and added that, as a sophomore, gas "wasn't as much of a pain in the ass as it is now. Now ... you kind of cringe."
Senior Andrew Cane felt the pinch this year and sold his car due to the rise in gas prices. The stress involved in needing to rebalance his budget sent him to the classifieds.
"Now I ride my bike and take public transportation," he said. It's significantly easier on his wallet.
"I try not to drive as much," Carlos said, adding that she first started paying attention to the prices of gas last summer, as did Himes, "but what really gets me is going home and taking road trips."
Senior Annemarie Grimaldi, who has never had her own car while at school, misses the convenience of her small Toyota at home in Colorado.
Her reasons for not bringing her car are related only to the hassle of transporting it, but she doesn't miss having to pay for gas while she's here.
"At home, it takes about 30 to 45 minutes to get into town. That obviously puts a huge strain on my family," said Grimaldi, who lives outside of Colorado Springs. She considered moving into town this summer because of the gas prices to avoid the commute.
She remarked that how much she spends on gas has been less than groceries in the past, but also added that there is a possibility that might change this summer.
CIBC World Markets is predicting that the demand for oil will fall 10 percent in the next four years and that the price of gas will escalate to $4.50 in the near future.
