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October 2008
The Great Atlanta Gas Hunt, weekend edition
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’ll be out and about on other assignments today, but a few quick updates on the Southeast gas shortage.
8:29 p.m. In case you’d check out, here’s a gas Q&A. You know, if you were under a rock, on another planet, maybe just outside the Southeast, living without a car…
8:26 p.m. September was Georgia’s official “Preparedness Month” except at the gas pump. From a story by the AJC’s Alan Judd: “On Aug. 28, Gov. Sonny Perdue officially designated September as ‘Preparedness Month.’ The state, Perdue said, had developed an “ambitious and proactive” campaign with a name that bespoke vigilance: Ready Georgia. Two weeks later, however, Georgians learned just how unprepared the state was for a rapidly emerging crisis in auto-centric metro Atlanta: a gasoline shortage.”
10:33 a.m. You say shortage, he says emergency. Georgia leaders have debated all week how the gas shortage could have been handled differently, better, by others etc. This story from the local Fox station details more of their arguments.
- Speaking of leaders: Monday is the last day to register to vote in the Nov. 4 election!
10:29 a.m. Take your pick: high prices or hunting for gas. This story from the Augusta Chronicle says laws prohibiting gas retailers from raising prices make the shortage worse. “You do exacerbate the shortage. You don’t solve things, you make it worse,”David Mustard, an associate professor of economics at the University of Georgia told the Chronicle.
10:27 a.m. Is the gas shortage spreading? Here’s a blog post from New York’s Lower Hudson Valley, discussing stations that are out of gas. Yikes!
Resources
Gas shortage Q&A for all the basics.
Atlanta’s gas Twitter for real-time updates from drivers.
Atlanta area gas prices provided by GasBuddy.com.
Fueling tips from the AJC Smart Spending blog.
Shortage talk, public transportation information and transit planners from the AJC’s Your Money.
Rookies Guide to Riding MARTA, a guide from AJC writers and readers.
105 tips to use less gas from EcoModder.
Scenes from a shortage, a photo gallery of gas hunters.
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Friday: The Great Atlanta Gas Hunt…seriously, still going.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Good morning, hunters. I heard from plenty of you yesterday that the shortage was supposedly easing, but you still weren’t finding any gas. As we’ve said: it’s going to be a week or two before you’ll find it everywhere, all the time, like usual.
Weekend travel advice from AAA: stick to your usual fueling habits, and don’t top-off, unless (!) you’re going on a weekend trip in the Southeast and out of the metro area. Then, you ought to fill up when your tank is about half-full.
Below, more news. Resources, maps, Twitter and ideas are at the very bottom.
12:53 p.m. Glass-half-full approach to deliveries during a gas shortage. I hope we’re past this now, but delivery drivers were some of the first to notice a fuel shortage, and some of the hardest hit. Maybe the answer was delivering to the gas lines.
11:09 a.m. Perdue asked, but that’s not why the Department of Energy gave. From Jim Galloway’s blog: “DOE approved an additional release of up to 900,000 barrels of crude oil from the SPR to two refiners who submitted requests. This was a concurrent request made by the individual refiners that echoed what the Governor was asking for. The 900,000 barrel SPR release was not in direct response to the Governor’s request.”
10:11 a.m. So you want to bike. Now what? Bike and alternative transportation groups in town say they’re getting more calls and questions about their services, but a lot of their callers start with “Where can I get a bike?” There are some answers.
9:34 a.m. If you can’t find premium, what should you do? AJC reporter Stacy Shelton asked experts. Their response: Go ahead and fill it up with regular. It’s not optimum —- your car probably won’t perform as well —- but it also won’t ruin it. And technology has improved enough that shouldn’t be knocking. Here’s more info from the Federal Trade Commission on gasoline grades.
8:11 a.m. Time to say it’s over?
Some of the overnight Tweets tracking gas in Atlanta say the crisis is over and it’s time to back off. There seem to be fewer updates overall. What do you think? Is it over?
7:45 a.m. Volunteers struggle to stay on the road. From a story by AJC reporters Phil Kloer and Rachel Pomerance: “Doris Turner had five more meals to deliver when she heard the dreaded ding-ding-ding: the chiming signal from her 1997 Buick Park Avenue that she was perilously low on gas. She knew she had maybe 20 miles’ worth left in the tank, not enough to deliver meals to the five remaining senior citizens who were counting on her. She started looking for a station with gas…She headed north. But she never made it.” Her gas tank was empty.
7:33 a.m. Should government be accounting for gas it uses during a shortage? WSB reported that Fulton County vehicles were used to transport workers to off-site festivities, and whoever called the TV station was not happy about it. What do you think - is it a bad move, or not something worth caring about?
Resources
Gas shortage Q&A for all the basics.
Atlanta’s gas Twitter for real-time updates from drivers.
Atlanta area gas prices provided by GasBuddy.com.
Fueling tips from the AJC Smart Spending blog.
Shortage talk, public transportation information and transit planners from the AJC’s Your Money.
Rookies Guide to Riding MARTA, a guide from AJC writers and readers.
105 tips to use less gas from EcoModder.
Scenes from a shortage, a photo gallery of gas hunters.
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Thursday: The Great Atlanta Gas Hunt rolls on
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
And, we’re back!
Yesterday spurred all kinds of news about why finding gas is easier, but not so easy that you can call it pull-in-pump-and-go normal.
Where can this go today? As always, resources below, news coming up.
4:22 p.m. Want to ride your bicycle? Jennifer Perry interviewed Rebecca Serna of the Atlanta Bicycle Campaign and Jeff Marks, a bike commuter, with a little Queen playing in the background.
Also: I mentioned yesterday they’ve got a Confident City Cycling classes; they just added another in Decatur on Oct. 18.
If you’re thinking of getting on the road on two wheels, don’t hop on your 10-year-old bike straight out of garage. Take it to a bike shop for a tune up or go by SoPo Bicycle Co-op in East Atlanta to learn how to do it yourself.
12:10 a.m. A picture of supply, demand and gas shortages. People say over and over that the gas shortage is a supply and demand issue, but this little video offers up an image of what that means and how that works in our economy. Might help the visual thinkers in the crowd. It looks and sounds a little like living through my high school econ class again, except gas cost about $1.15 per gallon then.
11:53 a.m. Even/odd memories. North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley told the Charlotte Observer he remembered the even-odd filling days in the 1970s, when he lived in “a trailer park owned by people who had a nearby filling station.” “I’d study and peek out,” he said. “When it looked like the line was the shortest, I’d go get some.” The even-odd filling plan has come up several times as a way to help Atlanta, although the need for it might be behind us now. What would you think of that plan?
10:40 a.m. Quality time with the family while waiting in line for gas? Not so much. If it’s frustrating for parents, imagine being a sleepyhungrythirstyboredstickylalalalaarewethereyet! kid in the back seat. The MOMania blog checked in on how a gas shortage affects families a few days ago. How do you handle the demands of a family with long lines or worry about not finding gas?
9:45 a.m. “This gas thing is driving us crazy.” That line comes from Joseph Schwartz of Kennesaw, a psychologist who sat in line out on the highway to wait 20 minutes to fill up his fuel-efficient Prius.“You believe what you see in the news and you don’t want to run out, so you get anxious,” he explained. “Maybe I shouldn’t say anxious. You get stressed out and concerned.”
9:16 a.m. If your mail is running late, blame the gas pumps. Indeed, it seems most mail carriers fill up at commercial stations. WXIA says there’s a fuel reserve for U.S. Postal Service big rigts in Gwinnett and Fulton counties, but that doesn’t help out the regular characters.
9:09 a.m. Two pipelines up, so what about a third? This story by AJC reporter Bill Torpy says state House members killed a bill that would have eased the permitting process to build a new $2 billion, 460-mile fuel line from Louisiana to Cobb County. The new line wouldn’t have solved this shortage, but Colonial Pipeline Co. officials are taking the opportunity to say it would help in the future, when two other lines are overburdened. Opposition says the bill would “erode property rights and evade environmental scrutiny.”
9:03 a.m. Yay! It’s better. Well, not really. No. Not yet. Oh, the cycle of emotions we’re going through! This is a more expansive version of a story from yesterday about why it might feel a little easier at the pump, but it truly won’t be back to our usual volume and prices for a week or two.
Resources
Gas shortage Q&A for all the basics.
Atlanta’s gas Twitter for real-time updates from drivers.
Atlanta area gas prices provided by GasBuddy.com.
Fueling tips from the AJC Smart Spending blog.
Shortage talk, public transportation information and transit planners from the AJC’s Your Money.
Rookies Guide to Riding MARTA, a guide from AJC writers and readers.
105 tips to use less gas from EcoModder.
Scenes from a shortage, a photo gallery of gas hunters.
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Wednesday: The Great Atlanta Gas Hunt continues
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Nevermind the pain at the pump — panic at the pump seemed to subside a bit yesterday as pipelines filled and drivers came to believe there really would be gas in metro Atlanta soon — but not necessarily today.
So we’re back to following the gas news as it comes.
Like yesterday, more resources to help you get around, from MARTA 101 to gas-pricing tools, are at the bottom of the post. Check back here for news and notes throughout the day.
5:15 p.m. More crude oil going to the Gulf Coast, and eventually, to us, as gas. A press release from Gov. Sonny Perdue’s office says the Department of Energy agreed with his request to release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. What does that mean? When Gulf Coast refineries are back up and running, they’ll have more product to refine, and it’ll get back to us. How long will it take? Well…it won’t help you tomorrow.
4:57 p.m. Is a gas shortage a good wake-up call? This Gwinnett Daily Post editorial says, “we should treat this as a wake-up call. We need to consider our behavior, not only when it comes to hoarding gas, but how much of it we use in general.” A woman I interviewed today said this reminded her to take nothing for granted. Do the shortage and high prices convince you to make a significant life change toward conservation?
2:57 p.m. Optimism abounds, but don’t get too excited just yet. I heard these words with my own ears: “The worst is behind us.” That from a QuikTrip spokesman that says there will still be stations going without, but it’s getting better. Are you feeling optimistic? Normal, even?
12:22 p.m. Maybe this can be a permanent change? Earlier this year, I talked to carpoolers that said they’d keep their new commute even if gas prices sank. I heard from the RideSmart program, which organizes carpools and Bike Buddy programs, that their call volume was up 18 percent in the last two weeks than in the week before, and that 31 percent more had sought out rideshare opportunities this September over this time last year. (Of 572 commuters, 353 checked in in the last week.) Over at the Atlanta Bicycle Campaign, they’re enrolling students in the Confident City Cycling classes. One class is Oct. 11 in Midtown. Another is Oct. 25 at the Perimeter REI, 1165 Perimeter Ctr W, Suite 200. Has the shortage taken the mystery out of alternative commuting?
10:12 a.m. Loooooooooong lines. Long enough to last through a bad song. Spotted this video on the Carfree USA blog. It’s true, the music is bad (and drops an F-bomb, I think, if that kinda thing offends you), but the visual of a line of cars waiting for gas in Alpharetta is a little shocking to watch from the side.
9:59 a.m. Everybody loves Twitter. You might, too! The #atlgas tag on Twitter has offered up an up-to-the-minute list of places that are in and out of gas for days. Some of those folks I just linked to wrongly said that “traditional media” (as in, us) buried it in a sidebar (it’s been out front on ajc.com for days) as if we weren’t using it to find gas, too. All I can say is this — Twitter: it’s not just to see what your old college roomie had for breakfast.
9:46 a.m. Just because we’re short on gas here doesn’t mean the rest of the state is. Keith Still at the Still Traveling blog lists plenty of nearby destinations — good for driving or flying — where gas is available. If you can just find the stuff to get you there, you shouldn’t have a problem getting back.
8:13 a.m. At least we can agree that gas lines were long. Beyond that? Not so much. Readers letters today are anti-pricecap, anti-high-sulfur fuel, pro-high-sulfur-fuel, anti-topping off and pro-P.E./pro-small-school/anti-bike-path. Wow. By the way, if you want to send a letter to the editor about gas shortages or anything else, here’s how.
8:04 a.m.: We had a gas-crisis plan; we just didn’t use it. Reporters Stacy Shelton and Jeremy Redmon dug into the state’s energy emergency plan and found that Gov. Sonny Perdue could implement gas conservation measures, just like water conservation. State officials said the shortage wasn’t severe enough, so you’re on your own in the gas line. Or rather, with everybody else in the gas line.
Also: Folks aren’t so happy with how Charlotte’s leadership handled the gas shortage.
It’s hard to see, but the words “Got gas, follow me” are written on the back of this fuel tanker truck driving into downtown Atlanta on Wednesday amid morning commuter traffic on Interstate 85 South.
Resources
Gas shortage Q&A for all the basics.
Atlanta’s gas Twitter for real-time updates from drivers.
Atlanta area gas prices provided by GasBuddy.com.
Fueling tips from the AJC Smart Spending blog.
Shortage talk, public transportation information and transit planners from the AJC’s Your Money.
Rookies Guide to Riding MARTA, a guide from AJC writers and readers.
105 tips to use less gas from EcoModder.
Scenes from a shortage, a photo gallery of gas hunters.
Permalink | Comments (4) | Post your comment | Categories: gasprices
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