I remember those long lines living in Connecticut and New York State during that time. My first new car purchase was a 1977 VW Rabbit Diesel, no lines for diesel, way less per gallon, you could buy all you want, I look back now and just smile....
Gas lines!
DFW is going nuts filling up their tank during lunch. I guess they see a shortage that I don't.
Oh wait. I drive on electrons not noxious fumes. I got a half tank. That'll last a good month!
Oh wait. I drive on electrons not noxious fumes. I got a half tank. That'll last a good month!
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Red, yellow and green flags, odd and even license plates. Ah, the good old days.They took care of line jumpers back during the 70's fuel lines...
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You left out the 10-gallon limit. Or was that just a Dallas thing?Red, yellow and green flags, odd and even license plates. Ah, the good old days.
We probably had the 10 gallon limit too, but I was driving Corvairs during both gas shortages and about 10 topped the tanks off.You left out the 10-gallon limit. Or was that just a Dallas thing?
The irony of this type of line is the amount of gas being burned while sitting in line.I just came across this thread and remembered that I'd taken a picture of a gas station line while running an errand the other day. I went back by the same location 2 hours later (about 10:30 AM) and the pump handles all had been bagged.
Hope this displays well. I took it in panoramic mode. The cars on the far left are using the right-turn lane to enter the station from the other street.
View attachment 139562
While I hope we never have another gas shortage such as US drivers experienced in 1973 and also 1979 using today's technology the long gas lines could be largely eliminated. Imagine being able to submit a request for a reservation at a filling station on your phone, similar to purchasing movie tickets. There would be a limit, say 10 gallons, that you could purchase online. You would then drive to the station, within a 1 hour window, starting at the time of your appointment. You would swipe your phone or enter a pin at the pump and the pump would dispense your fuel purchase. There would be no waiting in a long line of vehicles waiting to be fueled, no need to waste gas waiting in line or driving around looking for a station that had gas.
Particularly when you were driving a car that got 8 mpg.The irony of this type of line is the amount of gas being burned while sitting in line.
I once waited for 45 minutes in a line 20 miles from home simply because they had gas. Got to the pump and they weren't taking any gas cards (remember those? -- my dad gave me his stack of them that day), only cash of which I had none since I was a kid. After filling up (which you did before paying in those days), I offered the guy my watch. Then I had to drive up and back yet again to bring him the cash and get my watch back.
The next internet millionaire is bornWhile I hope we never have another gas shortage such as US drivers experienced in 1973 and also 1979 using today's technology the long gas lines could be largely eliminated. Imagine being able to submit a request for a reservation at a filling station on your phone, similar to purchasing movie tickets. There would be a limit, say 10 gallons, that you could purchase online. You would then drive to the station, within a 1 hour window, starting at the time of your appointment. You would swipe your phone or enter a pin at the pump and the pump would dispense your fuel purchase. There would be no waiting in a long line of vehicles waiting to be fueled, no need to waste gas waiting in line or driving around looking for a station that had gas.
Since 1979 the US has made changes to how it manages and uses available oil. First, we now have a strategic oil reserve, which didn't exist until after Reagan took office in 1980. Second, the automotive fleet is more efficient than ever, to the extent that in 2016 Americans drove more than any other year on record yet used less gas than the previous high year of 2007 (before the housing bubble burst). Finally, oil refiners now store up to six months worth of unrefined crude. They do this to smooth out short term price variations.While I hope we never have another gas shortage such as US drivers experienced in 1973 and also 1979 using today's technology the long gas lines could be largely eliminated. Imagine being able to submit a request for a reservation at a filling station on your phone, similar to purchasing movie tickets. There would be a limit, say 10 gallons, that you could purchase online. You would then drive to the station, within a 1 hour window, starting at the time of your appointment. You would swipe your phone or enter a pin at the pump and the pump would dispense your fuel purchase. There would be no waiting in a long line of vehicles waiting to be fueled, no need to waste gas waiting in line or driving around looking for a station that had gas.
On the international scene the OPEC nations no longer have a stranglehold on oil. Russia, the US, and Canada all have more reserves and the ability to pump them should OPEC decide to raise prices or withhold oil to try to penalize any given country or region.
Combining all of the above we are unlikely to see another politically generated artificial gas crunch like we did twice in the 1970s.
They may have been there just for the air pump.
I just retuned from surveying the damage from Irma around my home. There aren't any gas lines because service stations have no gasoline and now no electric power to run their pumps if they had it. Prior to the storm, fuel deliveries had been reduced by Hurricane Harvey. In Florida we have few pipelines (if any) for gasoline supply. Most fuel is tankered in to East coast ports. Thanks to the Jones act, products shipped by actual ships that engage in interstate commerce must be delivered by U.S. crewed ships, with U.S. flag and U.S. ship construction. I often wondered why there were oil refineries in the Bahamas as they don't have any oil--but now I know why. However, with the Texas refineries just coming back on-line and the Jones act in place, there was no way to get fuel here. That was resolved by a temporary order to relax the Jones act rules for the emergency just as hurricane Irma came into the picture and the foreign flagged tankers with gasoline bound for Florida took off for safe harbor. That left the 6.5 Million people who left the state for their own safety with limited fuel supplies and almost nothing for those who stayed.
Bottom line: You can still have '70's style gas lines even if we have an abundance of fuel---in the wrong place.
With my Volt, have been able to feel confident that I could travel locally without fear of running out of "fuel". I havent' been one of the unfortunate majority of people who have no power, but if I did loose it, I have a backup generator that runs on natural gas. And remember, if you have no power to charge your Volt, chances are your gasoline station doesn't have power to pump your gasoline.
I think these two storms will bring the fuel supply problem to a head in the near future. You cannot constrain supply leading up to an emergency with outdated nearly 100 year old laws like the Jones act. You can't have all your retail and wholesale fuel supply delivery system held hostage to an electrical power grid that can be damaged by storms or other human interactions (hackers, EMP or whatever stuff you can dream up). You need to have backup generators at a certain number of local gasoline stations and all stations along evacuation routes need alternate power. Gasoline stranded in underground storage tanks is of no use to anyone.
Bottom line: You can still have '70's style gas lines even if we have an abundance of fuel---in the wrong place.
With my Volt, have been able to feel confident that I could travel locally without fear of running out of "fuel". I havent' been one of the unfortunate majority of people who have no power, but if I did loose it, I have a backup generator that runs on natural gas. And remember, if you have no power to charge your Volt, chances are your gasoline station doesn't have power to pump your gasoline.
I think these two storms will bring the fuel supply problem to a head in the near future. You cannot constrain supply leading up to an emergency with outdated nearly 100 year old laws like the Jones act. You can't have all your retail and wholesale fuel supply delivery system held hostage to an electrical power grid that can be damaged by storms or other human interactions (hackers, EMP or whatever stuff you can dream up). You need to have backup generators at a certain number of local gasoline stations and all stations along evacuation routes need alternate power. Gasoline stranded in underground storage tanks is of no use to anyone.
Since hurricane Sandy I believe New Jersey now has a requirement that gas stations in that state have backup generators so they can continue to pump gas if the power is out.
It's not mandatory, but if the stations get a genset, they get assistance from the state.Since hurricane Sandy I believe New Jersey now has a requirement that gas stations in that state have backup generators so they can continue to pump gas if the power is out.
Pretty sure that's not an approved container.
I hope that is diesel fuel he is pumping, that is still not an approved container.
Well, since I started this thread, I used about a gallon of gas. Still got plenty.
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