Higher gas prices fuel adjusted habits

Her daily commute to work on the Long Island Rail Road, Hewlett resident Lauren Sheridan says, is the reason rising gasoline prices haven’t affected her as much as someone who drives to work every day.

“It makes it a lot better,” she said of taking the train. “On the weekends, I do travel less and plan out my route more when I’m running errands to make the most out of the gas I have.”

Over the holiday weekend, Valley Stream resident Joe Alenci said, he decided to stay home rather than visit upstate relatives because of the high gas prices. “It’s crazy,” he said. “I’ve started to walk a lot lately to stores in the area like CVS [on Peninsula Boulevard.]”

GasBuddy Senior Petroleum Analyst Patrick DeHaan said that gas prices have risen as the supply of summer gasoline has tightened and several refineries on the East Coast have closed. “Prices will likely peak in the next six weeks before starting to slowly fall,” DeHaan said, “but consumers can expect high prices all summer.”

On Rockaway Turnpike in Cedarhurst, prices last week ranged from $4.15 a gallon for regular gas at Sunoco to $4.25 at the Shell station. In Hewlett, the Sunoco and Gulf stations were selling regular for $4.09 a gallon while across the street, at the Gas Sale station, it was $4.15.

Far Rockaway resident John Patrylo said he only fills his gas tank if he’s traveling, and otherwise puts just $20 worth in his tank each time he stops at a gas station. “I also try to stay local, and I’ve had to make adjustments,” he said. “I’ll drive around to find lower prices in the area.”

Jaman Belez, of Inwood, owns a landscaping business, and rising prices have had an impact on both his business costs and his personal spending. “It’s too much money,” he said of what he spends to fuel the vehicle he uses to transport his equipment, which includes a mower and weed wackers.

Belez added that the increased prices have forced him to spend less on landscaping equipment and hire fewer workers. “I also try to stay local when I drive around,” he said, “and I’ve been affected by it a lot.”

DeHaan said that consumers could expect prices to approach or exceed prices in 2008, which peaked at an average of $4.28 per gallon of regular that July. “To conserve gas, consumers can trade in their low-fuel-economy vehicles for newer vehicles, as gasoline prices will likely remain at elevated levels,” he said. “Also, they can shop around for the cheapest gasoline, combine trips, carpool and drive defensively.”