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Stabilizing Fuel Prices: Good News in Advance of Summer

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Motorists can expect lower fuel costs this summer driving season.

Ford Transit

Drivers should face less costly fill ups at gas pumps this summer.

Fuel prices may finally have begun to stabilize after reaching the highest prices we have seen in six months earlier in May. Refineries have increased production to meet record-high demand and that effort has forced gas prices down earlier this week by one penny to a national average of $2.21 a gallon according to AAA.

The price stabilization is welcome news for consumers as Memorial Day weekend arrives in two weeks, signaling the unofficial start to summer. At $2.21 per gallon, fuel prices have risen by 17 cents in May alone, but the average remains 45 cents cheaper than this time last year.

Record Gas Stock

According to the United States Energy Information Agency, gasoline stock is at the highest level since the start of May, setting a record. AAA expects drivers to take to the road this summer at levels not seen since 2007, the last year before the onset of the Great Recession. As long as supply keeps up with demand, fuel prices should remain relatively stable throughout the summer months. This is good news for consumers and should benefit the economy, especially the hospitality industry.

As always, fuel prices vary across the country with California ($2.80) currently with the highest averages followed by Hawaii ($2.64), Washington ($2.49), Nevada ($2.48), and Alaska ($2.46). Fuel prices are now above $2 per gallon in most locations, although Oklahoma ($1.95), Kansas and Missouri ($1.98), and Texas and Arkansas ($2.00) are currently at or below that threshold.

Regional Differences in Fuel Prices

Although historically coming in much higher than the rest of the nation, the western states have seen some of the largest year-over-year drops in fuel prices. California drivers currently are saving 91 cents per gallon to 73 cents for Nevada. Alaska drivers are saving 69 cents at the pump on average to 60 cents in Oregon. Meanwhile, Hawaii drivers are paying 59 cents per gallon less, while Arizona drivers are enjoying a reprieve of 55 cents per gallon on average.

Increasing demand on the west coast may put pressure on prices moving forward, but relief is on the way. Indeed, AAA says ExxonMobil’s Torrance, California, refinery should come back on line later this month once it restarts its fluid catalytic cracker and related gasoline production units.

Other regions are benefitting in various ways too. The Gulf Coast continues to enjoy the lowest fuel prices in the nation as the area benefits from a greater concentration of refineries. In the Midwest, prices are more volatile as the region deals with the twin challenges of increasing demand and heavy refinery maintenance.

On the East Coast, refineries coming back online have helped keep up with demand, although some of the highest costs in the nation are found in that area with Pennsylvania averaging $2.40 per gallon to $2.38 per gallon for New York.

Get Road Ready

As always, prepare your car for the road ahead, especially for those long trips that will take you far from home.

Pull out your maintenance schedule, taking care of all due items before you leave. Even if something isn’t due for another 1,000 or 2,000 miles — such as tire rotation — get this done now. The last thing you want is an incident or accident resulting from neglected maintenance.

If you belong to a roadside assistance club, verify that your information is current. Carry with you your card, download an app, and check that your account is active. Lastly, go through your emergency kit to ensure jumper cables are present, as well as all tools, a working flashlight with extra batteries, flares, cloth, and other items. You can build a kit yourself or buy one preassembled.

See Also — You Can Put Together a Car Emergency Kit

America’s Crumbling Infrastructure and Your Car

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Americans shell out an average of $300 for each pothole-related vehicle repair. Time to fix the infrastructure!

pothole repair infrastructure
A federal maintenance and equipment staff member makes pothole repairs.
(U.S. Air Force Photo By/Josh Plueger)

America’s infrastructure of roads, bridges, and highways is in serious need of a major investment. Roads are in such disrepair in some areas that consumers are paying for it in personal repairs to their own vehicles, averaging approximately $300 to fix pothole-related vehicle damage according a new study conducted by AAA.

The motorist organization found that consumers made $15 billion in pothole-related vehicle repairs over the past five years, or about $3 billion per annum. Potholes routinely appear throughout the winter as roads freeze, thaw, and refreeze.

The Birth of a Pothole

The Michigan Department of Transportation adequately outlines the pothole development process in its four-step “Birth of a Pothole” graphic. It all begins when rain and snow seeps into the soil beneath the road surface. Then, when the ground freezes, it pushes the pavement up. Next, as temperatures climb, the ground returns to its normal level, but the pavement typically remains raised. Finally, a pothole is formed once a vehicle travels across the resultant cavity, damaging the road. It is that damage that causes potholes and puts all drivers at risk.

AAA cautions drivers be on the look out for potholes while at the same time urging local and state governments to prioritize road maintenance.

“In the last five years, 16 million drivers across the country have suffered pothole damage to their vehicles,” said John Nielsen, AAA’s managing director of Automotive Engineering and Repair. “The problems range from tire punctures and bent wheels, to more expensive suspension damage.”

(See Also — President Trump’s SOTU Address Touts $1.5 Trillion Infrastructure Investment)

Deep Financial Hit

The AAA survey revealed that lower- and middle-income drivers have the most concern about potholes. That’s expected given that such consumers will also experience a deeper financial impact. For people who live paycheck to paycheck and depend on their vehicles for their livelihood, pothole-incurred damage can prove devastating.

“On average, American drivers report paying $300 to repair pothole-related vehicle damage,” continued Nielsen. “Adding to the financial frustration, those whose vehicles incurred this type of damage had it happen frequently, with an average of three times in the last five years.”

Because of the elevated risk of encountering potholes, AAA offers suggestions for damage avoidance that go beyond slowing down and skirting road damage. For one, drivers should ensure that their tires are properly inflated. Having sufficient tread depth remaining is important too, as it provides additional cushioning between the vehicle and the pothole.

When Avoidance is Not Possible

When encountering a pothole, drivers cannot always safely avoid hitting one, but they can slow down, release the brakes and steer straight when driving over a pothole. Remaining on the alert for road damage and allowing sufficient room between vehicles can also help drivers avoid potholes explains AAA.

Annually, AAA claims its members make more than 4 million calls to for flat tire assistance, usually due to pothole damage. The motorist organization also found that the typical spare tire has been replaced by a tire inflator kit, but those kits are not sufficient for making repairs for destroyed tires. Instead, motorists should opt for a full-size spare and keep it properly inflated. Adding that tire to the vehicle’s normal tire rotation procedure is a wise decision too.

Making Infrastructure Repairs a National Priority

AAA believes that road conditions will only worsen until legislators make road repairs a national priority. Motorists rely heavily on a crumbling infrastructure, what includes sketchy bridges, inadequate tunnels, and porous roadways. In 2015, Congress increased transportation funding to meet those repairs, but AAA says that as much as $170 billion in additional funding is needed annually to adequately rectify the problem.

See Also — Ford Announces Winter Tire Package for Upcoming Focus RS