Gas Reservations

[cnaumann]

Just as the damage from Katrina is being repaired, here comes Rita with the potential to damage more oil refineries and send gasoline prices to new records. That is assuming that you can find gasoline at all! In the thick of all this, I am planning a trip to Orlando at the end of this month. I will be driving. I am a little nervous about the availability of gas for the trip. Though I certainly do not want to pay high prices, $5 a gallon gasoline does not worry me nearly so much the prospect of not being able to buy gasoline at all. The entire trip is going to take about 80 gallons of gas. If the price goes up two dollars a gallon, that only adds about $160 to the cost of the trip. That can easily come out of other budgets.

I am not about to haul a bunch of gas cans with me. That is too dangerous. But I would pay for some piece of mind to know that when I need gas, I will be able get i. I know the route I am driving, I know when I am leaving and I know the gas mileage of my car. It is not very difficult to figure out when I will need to stop for gas, where I will be, and how much gas I will need. I would be willing to pay in advance for a service that guaranteed that the gas was available when I needed it and that I would not have to wait in any long lines to buy it. In other words, I want to be able to make reservation at a gas station in the same way that I make reservation at a hotel. I would pay a deposit up front for guaranteed availability at a guaranteed rate. It seems to me that any major filling station chain could set this up will little trouble. Comments?

 

[safetymom]

At this point I don't think gas stations will guarantee they will have gas. Also if they offered it I still think you would be waiting in line to get the gas.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Let's wait and see before we all "panic". I believe they will "offer" gas if they can get the "right price"--whatever that winds up being.
Virtually all of the "gas lines" and shortages with Katrina were media induced panic buying. We had folks in gas lines up here that first day or two--and one lady, when interviewed by the ever present media, said she really didn't know why she got in line--she just saw the line and figured she would get in!!!
And actually, it was to save .10 cents a gallon from the other station across the street. Which savings she burned up waiting in line------.