LancesWorld.com Journal

Gas prices have been on the rise for the past few years, and the past several months have seen astronomical jumps in the price per gallon. Here in San Francisco, fuel prices are unimaginable. The average price per gallon in San Francisco has increased by nearly 50 cents in the past month, and by a full $1.40 since January of 2005. Whereas it used to cost me about $30 to fill my tank, my visit to the gas station on Friday ran me a full 33% higher - $40. And this is just for regular gasoline. Here is a chart that tracks gas price in San Francisco since I moved here in November of 2004.

Unfortunately, it appears that there is no end in sight to this upward trend. A recent Business Week article claims that certain stations in San Francisco have topped $4 per gallon for premium-grade fuel. Disturbingly, Guy Barnes, president of Fast-Ad, one of the companies that produces the gas station pricing signs that we have all come to dread, say that his company has been receiving a growing number of orders for sign numbers stamped with a giant "4" and a decimal point! Does this really mean that we will soon see the average price in San Francisco hit or top $4 per gallon? Analysts in this same issue of Business Week predict that it is possible for gas to reach as much as $6 per gallon as the U.S. average. Considering that San Francisco is typically above the US average by at least 30 cents, that means San Francisco could be facing $6.30 - $6.50 per gallon, or more.

The costs to keep a car in San Francisco are high enough without having to worry about the gas prices being so high. I pay $1,200 a year just to park my car at home. If I drove to work and parked there (which I don't), you would have to tack on another $1,032 per year. On top of parking charges, there is also insurance, regular maintenance, repairs, amd of course, fuel. Thankfully, being on the newer side, I haven't had to have any major repair work done on my own car. I estimate the cost to keep a car in the city of San Francisco for an average person to be close to, if not just over, $6,000 per year. Drop this by $1,000 if people don't have to pay to park at work.

So the question is, should I keep my car? I have stopped driving it because the cost of gas is so high and it is only slightly less convenient to take public transit to and from work. It takes a little longer to take the bus and BART, but at least I can read while communting instead of being stuck behind the wheel. If I sold my car, sure, I'd have to find some alternative method of getting to and from the grocery store, but why not just buy a $1,000 motor scooter. Those things are sufficient to get you around town, and cost a lot less to park, insure and maintain. I'll have to seriously consider whether or not it's worth keeping this car.