Residents enjoying drop in gas prices

Thursday, October 30, 2008

The average price of gas in Marion County dropped 6 cents, according to news reports in Indianapolis this week. Gas prices at many stations are at $2.32 in Indianapolis and $2.44 statewide.

In Greencastle, prices are averaging about $2.46 a gallon. In Groveland they are at $2.38 and in Crawfordsville they are about $2.26 a gallon.

In Brownsburg, one station is selling gasoline for $1.93 a gallon. This is about a 50 percent drop from two months ago.

Crude oil fell to about $62 a barrel Tuesday after topping out at $147 in July. Experts are predicting it could drop even lower to the mid-$40s soon.

"Prices are still too high in Greencastle," said local residents pumping gas at Gas America and Speedway in Greencastle Wednesday.

"It's better than it was a month ago, but it doesn't make sense to me that we are paying more here. We always seem to be paying higher prices here than in towns around us," said Mike Clinton.

The lowest average price recently was in January 2007, when Hoosiers were paying $2.04. It hasn't been under the $2 mark since May 2005, according to AAA records.

With gas prices hovering around $2.46 a gallon, consumers said they were feeling a little more confident about their household budgets.

"With prices getting lower, that's got to make it easier for folks to do the things they like to do this time of year, which is mostly get ready for Christmas," Clinton said.

Another local resident, Paula Marsh, said she paid as much as $4.59 a gallon several months ago. Marsh said she was relieved by lower prices, although she added, "They could go right back up and we'll be screwed again."

Retail gasoline prices are based on multiple factors: competition, location, distance from refineries, gasoline taxes and required gasoline additives," said Jason Toews, co-founder of Gas Buddy.com, a Web site where drivers report local gasoline prices in their communities.

"Indiana has higher gas prices than Ohio, in part, because Indiana has higher state gasoline taxes and also charges sales tax on gasoline, which Ohio doesn't," Toews said.

State and federal taxes in Ohio account for 46.4 cents per gallon of the price of gasoline in Ohio. Indiana drivers pay 50.1 cents per gallon in state and federal taxes plus 7 percent in sales tax, which increased 1 percent beginning in April. When gasoline is $3 a gallon, drivers buying fuel in Indiana pay 21 cents in sales tax.

Charging sales tax on gasoline is an issue in the Indiana gubernatorial campaign, with Democrat Jill Long Thompson promising to cap sales taxes on fuel when it reaches $2.75 per gallon. Incumbent Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels disagrees with Thompson on the issue and took no action this year to cut sales taxes.

Taxes, though, don't account for the price differences across Indiana.

Cities usually have more competitive gas prices if they have a couple of big-box discount stores with stations, such as a Costco and Sam's Club or Wal-Mart," says Toews on his Web site.

"The number of service stations per capita is also a factor in lower prices. Oil companies' price gasoline by zone, and stations in different zones pay a different wholesale price, even if they're in the same city.

"It depends on the mix of stations and their pricing strategies," he said. "Sometimes the pricing is just arbitrary, whatever the market will bear."

According to data released last week from the Transportation Department, from last November through August, Americans drove 78.1 billion fewer miles than they did over the same 10-month period a year earlier.

"With the economy so iffy, you just don't want to take chances on spending money when you don't absolutely have to," added Marsh.

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  • Gas in BBurg 1.88 Greencastle are you tired of being ripped off? It is the local stations setting the price.

    -- Posted by Trying hard on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 6:46 AM
  • Gas is 2.02 and less in Martinsville. Why are our stations the last to lower their prices. I saw gas at 1.99 in Ohio over the weekend. Its amazing that our local gas vendors do this to us.

    -- Posted by breezyville on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 6:46 AM
  • this reporter needs to get her story straight. 1.98 in avon and indianapolis. this is why we always buy gas in indy. the prices in greencastle are outrageous. someone is getting rich and it is not us.

    -- Posted by swimdad on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 9:53 AM
  • It is also always cheaper in Groveland. In the middle of nowhere. I bet they are influenced by all the other stations in their town! As long as we keep paying it, they are going to keep charging and our local government can't or won't do a thing. I only buy it in town if I absolutely have to. Keep the green OUT of Greencastle (gas stations).

    -- Posted by pepperdog on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 10:26 AM
  • I live outside of Greencastle and you Greencastle residents need to know that you are being charged much higher prices than most places around. Avon, Brownsburg, and Plainfield are all under the $ 2.00 mark and have been for the last 3-4 days. I don't know why the stations in Greencastle can't lower their prices when Hendricks county is so much lower consistently. Greencastle is usually 34-40 cents higher per gallon at all times.

    -- Posted by mindmyownbusiness on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 11:00 AM
  • 1.98 in Groveland this morning

    -- Posted by floyd'srangerriders on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 12:24 PM
  • update Gas is now 1.82 in Brownsburg

    -- Posted by Trying hard on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 3:04 PM
  • I think we all can tell by the previous comments that indeed the price is higher in Greencastle, if that bugs you then go out of town to get it, ******** about it on an online forum does not solve anything. People always quote Plainfield or Avon prices, I was at a station in Brazil and they always quote Terre Haute prices. Fact is we dont live in those cities, we therefore dont pay those prices. It is all about competition, unfortunately Greencastle had quite a few stations but very few of them are competitive, Brazil, Crawfordsville ect are. Its business folks!

    -- Posted by quitcherbitchin on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 3:46 PM
  • """I think we all can tell by the previous comments that indeed the price is higher in Greencastle, if that bugs you then go out of town to get it, ******** about it on an online forum does not solve anything. People always quote Plainfield or Avon prices, I was at a station in Brazil and they always quote Terre Haute prices. Fact is we dont live in those cities, we therefore dont pay those prices. It is all about competition, unfortunately Greencastle had quite a few stations but very few of them are competitive, Brazil, Crawfordsville ect are. Its business folks!

    -- Posted by quitcherbitchin on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 3:46 PM"""

    A fool and their money are soon parted. You're either a fool or the owner of one of the local gas stations. Either or, I can quote the prices of Avon, Plainfield, Brazil, Terra Haute or Indianapolis because I work in Indy, therefore, I can buy my gas there before I come back to Greencastle each day. It's a shame to have to give my tax money to Plainfield instead of Greencastle. My money should be spent in this county to improve things here but as long as I have to pay 20-40 cents more a gallon, I'll spent it somewhere else like I have to do if I take my family out to an assortment of nice restruants in, oh, Avon, Plainfield, Terra Haute, Indianapolis.

    Just another reason to get rid of the current local politicians.

    -- Posted by Jahaya on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 10:57 PM
  • I agree, I work in Avon and gas there has been below $2.30 for weeks now, it was $2.30 when GC was still $2.70. If everyone would tell the gc gas stations to go to He!! and go to Avon or Plainfield and buy their gas, then I bet our prices would drop pretty fast.

    -- Posted by tbone46135 on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 10:58 PM
  • Oh and speaking of being ripped off...I will drive with my gas light on the 10 miles from Cloverdale to Greencastle to keep from paying what the poor people in Cloverdale have to pay. Bless the Casey and downtown Marathon stations. Pitty the travelers who get off the exit and buy then get back on and realize how much they've been ripped off when they get to Indy or Brazil.

    -- Posted by Jahaya on Thu, Oct 30, 2008, at 11:05 PM
  • Sunday 11-1-08 gas was ten cents cheaper in Fillmore, how can that little store charge less than all those big named oil companies in Greencastle, I will tell you how , he wants our business and GC doesn't care if he gets it.

    Go Fillmore and Groveland I will never buy gas in GC again, and haven't for some time. I'll drive to Danville if I have to.

    Boycott the GC thiefs.

    -- Posted by tjchopper on Mon, Nov 3, 2008, at 8:34 AM
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