Drivers On Long Island Change Habits To Keep Up With Rising Gas Costs
NEW YORK(CBSNewYork) -- With gas prices on Long Island now topping four dollars for a gallon drivers are changing their habits to cope with the costs.
"We definitely try to cluster our trips, only go where we need to go," Tricia Ingigneri told CBS 2's Jennifer McLogan.
The average price for a gallon of gas has jumped twenty-seven cents since Christmas and has hit a season high. Families are running fewer errands and spending more time shopping at malls, trying to get necessities from several stores at once.
Drivers On Long Island Change Habits To Keep Up With Rising Gas Costs
Some families are biting the bullet and buying hybrid cars, others are car-pooling.
"You don't want to waste money, everyone driving back and forth to sports events," car-pooler Giana Wenzel explained.
Experts told CBS 2 that the international oil market and state tax rates play a role in determining the cost of a gallon of gas.
"As far as the Middle East is concerned, the speculators are always going to be bidding that barrel of oil up," explained Andy Harris of Long Island's Gasoline Retailers Association.
New York State and Federal gas taxes now amount to sixty-one cents per gallon.
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