With gas prices spiking and a rash of hurricanes in the Gulf Coast affecting oil refineries, the cost of driving a car is constantly rising.
According to The New York Times, gas prices rose on Monday to a national average of $2.80, up from $2.748 the day before. The website, www.connecticutgasprices.com, which tracks local gas prices based on member reports, put three Washington Street gas stations at $2.84 a gallon for regular.
With a smaller campus to navigate and a shuttle service already in place, some students don’t have to worry about rising prices.
“I actually don’t know what the price of gas is right now,” said Tom Chase ’06. “I park my car and I avoid going near it.”
For necessary trips off campus, though, some students are thinking twice about offering rides.
“I’ve become reluctant about giving people rides around,” said Doug Walters ’08. “It’s weird to ask for money, but at the same time, it’s expensive.”
For others, though, the gas shortages caused by Hurricane Katrina in August nearly left them stranded. A resident of Atlanta, GA where the primary source of gas was in the affected Gulf area, Kadie D’Ambrosio ’06 said she thought fuel shortages might make it impossible to leave the area.
“When I left, the lines at gas stations were ridiculous,” D’Ambrosio said. “Many gas stations had to close because they had run out of gas, which is what led to all the panic. They were only letting people get $20 worth of gas and the prices had risen to over $5 a gallon. The governor had to declare a state of emergency to prevent price gouging, but even then, gas cost about $3 a gallon.”
Rising gas prices have effects beyond the pump as well. When it costs more to get places, the price of nearly everything can rise.
“I’ve been running the Westco café, and [off-campus] bands seem more inclined to ask for money, now that gas prices are higher,” Walters said.
According to Director of Public Safety Maryann Wiggin, however, the costs are not affecting the number of students who bring cars to campus. So far this semester about 500 cars have been registered with Public Safety, compared to last year’s number of about 425.
“I don’t think the gas situation has anything to do with it,” Wiggin said.
The parking pass has always been a necessary expense of driving. The price of a parking pass on campus went up from $10 a year to $50 in 2003. Public Safety said at the time that the $10 price had not been changed in decades.
“I think the higher price is still a reasonable amount to pay for parking,” Chase said. “Compared to other institutions, we still pay less, and have more available parking.”
Wiggin said that neither the increased price of parking nor gas have deterred students from registering their cars.
“It’s not really based on the price,” Wiggin said. “Registration here is still much less expensive than other schools. [And] in the last three or four years, more students have realized that they have to register their cars, rather than accruing multiple tickets for not registering.”
Wesleyan students are exempt, however, from one major source of financial burden. Connecticut law requires that people in the state for longer than 90 days register their car in the state and pay car taxes in Connecticut. For some this could result in paying double taxes, both in their home state and in Connecticut. According to the Middletown Police Department, however, Wesleyan students are exempt from this law.
Gas prices show no sign of going down, so even with cheap parking passes and no car taxes, it will always be pricey to drive. President Bush encouraged drivers on Monday to drive less often in order to compensate for the damage to oil refineries caused by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina.
“We can all pitch in by being better conservers,” Bush said in a press conference, as quoted by The New York Times.
Perhaps in typical Wesleyan fashion, though, students are one step ahead.
“I’ve always tried to drive less if possible, walk or bike if I can,” Walters said. “Now it’s definitely more of a financial thing, as well as just an attempt to use less gas.
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