Well, then I guess we can expect to see BP putting all their gasoline stations up for sale. After all, the managers are required to maximize the returns for their shareholders. If the stations are losing money, they have to dump them. I won't be holding my breath.
As for gas-outs - it's a sad joke, as has been pointed out here before. If you want to reduce gasoline (and diesel) consumption, for whatever reason, here's a start on what you can do to make a difference. 1) Walk somewhere. Anywhere. Just leave your guzzler parked. 2) Get a bicycle. Preferably something used. Try your local FreeCycle, or bike repair co-op, or a used bike dealer. Find something comfortable and practical for your use. Then use it. 3) Check the pressure on the tires on your vehicle. Correct if necessary. Slight overinflation is better for fuel economy than slight underinflation. Repeat monthly or more frequently if required. 4) Have your vehicle tuned up on a regular, appropriate schedule. Check owner's manual for details. Check for dragging brakes, emissions control system problems, etc while you are at it. 5) Plan your trips to minimize distance travelled (trip chaining). 6) Use public transit when available and appropriate. Or carpool. 7) Use biofuels, e.g. E100, E85, E10 as recommended for your vehicle. There are many flex-fuel vehicles on the road in the U.S. due to CAFE dual-fuel incentive, where the owners don't even know the vehicle is flex-fuel capable. Check your vehicle manual. Use biodiesel blend where available or appropriate (or make your own, of course). 8) Take extra weight out of your vehicle, as accelerating extra weight uses more energy, and de-accelerating extra weight increases brake wear. (e.g. sand and salt mixture for winter use should not be in the trunk all sumer as well). 9) When shopping for tires, look for economizer / fuel miser / energy wise labels. 10) When shopping for a replacement vehicle, look for something that is as fuel- efficient as possible while meeting most of your needs - not necessarily all of your needs. You can rent a vehicle to meet occasional requirements. 11) If you want to make a political statement, pick an oil company to boycott or support. Personally, I try to buy from MacEwen's because they are local and have been promoting ethanol blend here since before it was fashionable. I boycott Exxon/Esso/Imperial Oil due to their horrendous environmental record (and other undesirable practices). Trust me, if we actually managed to drop Exxon's gross revenue in a regional market by 10% for a quarter, that would definitely get their attention. Giving their station attendants and cashiers a quiet day won't. 12) Try to drive to avoid periods of traffic congestion. You get 0 mpg when idling in stopped traffic. I'm sure others can contribute more ideas beyond the list above. My point is, don't act for a day, act for a lifetime. Darryl McMahon "mphee" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Station owners really don't make much money off of gas. Their lucky to make a > nickel a gallon. They make their money on what's called C-Store sales. > > If more people could take public transportation it would help greatly. > > > Funny tidbit. BP says they loose money on their gas stations, $100mil last > year. You refine it, you transport it, you store it, you delivery it, and you > sell it. How do you loose money when you control all aspects of it. Just by > vertues of econmies of scale you have to make money. > > > On Mon, 29 Aug 2005 14:46:25 GMT, marilyn wrote > > effort to take public transportation for a whole month. > > > > Biofuel@sustainablelists.org wrote: > > "This is mostly an incorrect rumor. > > http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/nogas.asp - It'd better > > serve everyone to forward accurate information about > > alternatives to petroleum." > > > > Thanks for the reply, and especially for the Snopes site. I hadn't > > heard if it. I will check it from now on. > > > > I was concerned about the cost to the station owners, but > > wondered it it was part of a larger plan to start with a one day > > boycott as a symbol of protest, then move from there to a longer > > period that would have a major impact. I figured if anyone knew > > this, it would be this group. > > Marilyn > > > _______________________________________________ > Biofuel mailing list > Biofuel@sustainablelists.org > http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org > > Biofuel at Journey to Forever: > http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html > > Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): > http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ > > -- Darryl McMahon http://www.econogics.com/ It's your planet. If you won't look after it, who will? _______________________________________________ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
