We were driving back from Portland to Seattle last night when I spied a Costco just off the interstate at Wilsonville. Realizing that we were three hours away from home and it was almost 6PM (closing time for Costco on a sunday), I raced to take advantage of the last opportunity for low-price gas in the no-tax state. I joined the line at 6:04 PM and it took me 30 minutes to fill up.
There were two attendants, servicing 8 pumps and I quickly realized that I was in the last bastion of full-service gas stations. While the rest of the states have evolved and progressed, Oregon and New Jersey continue to distrust drivers to pump their own gas. There are many reasons cited for full-service but I wonder why these reasons are unique to Oregon and New Jersey: (1) gas spillage risk due to drivers topping off their tanks, (2) lost jobs of attendants, (3) saving drivers the trouble of dealing with weather, (4) cheaper gas prices due to lower insurance premiums from lower risk etc. How come these states allow motorcyclists to pump their own gas? Also, what about all the lost time and emissions resulting from dozens of cars waiting too long in line for a fill-up?
Monday, May 5, 2008
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