Dear Easter Bunny: Fill our baskets with gas money : News-Record.com : Greensboro & the Triad's most trusted source for local news and analysis

The Easter Bunny had better be glad he can’t drive. If he did, he probably wouldn’t be able to deliver all those baskets on Easter morning.

The reason? He’d have to spend all his spare cash on transportation costs.

AAA Carolinas says Tar Heel motorists can expect to pay more than ever to drive this year.

The Charlotte-based travel club says drivers will spend, on average, just over 66 cents a mile to keep their vehicles on the road. That’s 6 cents higher than last year.

All that assumes, of course, that gas prices — a major contributor to the increase — will remain steady. But not even the Easter Bunny would believe that.

Government officials said this week that there is a one-in-three chance that the national average will exceed $4 a gallon this summer.

Currently, prices in the Triad average $3.73, or nearly $1 higher than last Easter.

On top of high gas prices, motorists have to deal with rising costs for vehicles and insurance. AAA says the owner of an average-size sedan who travels 15,000 miles a year can expect to pay $9,944 to drive, up $884 from last year.

SUV drivers can expect to pay roughly $3,000 more than the average; small sedan owners would shell out about $1,800 less.

Driving costs also include maintenance, tires, taxes, registration, depreciation and finance charges.

To reduce costs, motorists can reduce speeds, keep their vehicles properly tuned, maintain correct tire pressure, get the junk out of the trunk and get one of those fancy iPhone apps that finds the cheapest gas.

But here’s another possibility.

Instead of colored eggs, ask the Easter Bunny to deliver a gallon of gas on Sunday.

Contact Donald W. Patterson at 373-7027 or don.patterson@news-record.com

RonaldusMagnus

April 22, 2011 - 3:39 am EDT

Forget the Easter eggs, I want a president who is doing something about high gas prices, not just telling us to get used to it. When gas prices spiked under Bush, there was a big push for domestic production and we opened up more areas for oil exploration. Gas prices dropped like a rock. Opec does not have to worry about that with this current regime in office. They laugh at us. Not to mention the fact that Obama's out of control spending is turning the dollar into play money. Obama is right, as long as he is in charge I guess we better get used to high oil prices....

Lord Trigo

April 22, 2011 - 8:50 am EDT

Love how conservatives decry any government interference in the "free market" as "socialism"... until gas prices go up, that is. Then it's, "Why won't the president do something?" Too funny.

IvanK

April 22, 2011 - 10:22 am EDT

Problem is that our Marxist Pres IS INTERFERING with the free market. He has INTENTIONALLY ordered the denial of any drilling permits- Thus preventing the free market from working. Why did our Pres give the Brazillians 2 BILLION to drill over there and another 2.5 Billion to the Columbians to drill as well? Because his Boss George Soros is invested there and he stands to make Billions more. So, to answer your question Mr Lib, We are asking the Pres to do something because he has INTENTIONALLY interfered with the free markets in order to make his campaign funder several billion more.
BHO, "El Duce" has stated for the record that he wants to shut down coal and oil so that energy prices will sky rocket- all to serve his BS clean energy policy. Guess what, all those liberal policies have drained this country of it's jobs, wealth, and independence. Just like a Marxist Dictator wannabe likes it.

goodtoknow

April 22, 2011 - 10:27 am EDT

Right On!!! I also like calling BHO " El Duce".

3610305

April 22, 2011 - 8:38 pm EDT

Why not put the blame where it belongs on the Wall Street speculators who are now trading in oil futures and raising the price of gasoline. These are the same people who speculated with the mortgages and almost ruined this country and then had to have a govt. bailout. They are now back in the same business making outrageous bonuses while you pay $4.00 a gallon. This area needs reform but lobbyists make sure that will not happen.

April 22, 2011 - 8:24 am EDT

Welcome one and all to the "Hope & Change" you voted for! Next time a false Messiah runs for office (promising Christmas every day), you'll know better.
I will say that his political cronies have made Billions from you though and they all thank you very much!

April 22, 2011 - 9:20 am EDT

DRILL BABY DRILL!!!!!!

April 22, 2011 - 9:25 am EDT

It was recently on the news that the United States has more reserves than any country in the world, and that included Saudi Arabia. Why then, are we spending billions of dollars to foreign countries for our fuel.

The Socialist Party, we call the Democratic Party, has blocked all drilling possible.

4u2no

April 22, 2011 - 2:24 pm EDT

OBAMA became President when BUSH left office. OBAMA'S been in office for MORE than 2 years. Gas is averaging around $4.00/gallon. OBAMA must be in bed with Big Oil. That's what liberals said about BUSH. They said it LOUD and they said it OFTEN. Being LOUD very seldom makes you RIGHT. Being RIGHT on the political spectrum always gives you a better shot at being RIGHT. It's not called RIGHT because it's wrong.

April 22, 2011 - 8:44 pm EDT

I don't understand the conservative blogs on the "Liberal" News and Record website. Didn't think the cons. would touch a liberal rag much less read it.

Doug Johnson

April 22, 2011 - 8:51 pm EDT

No problem, the Community Organizer is forming a committee, to find out the cause of high gas.
For any of you that work, you know forming a committee, means we have no clue.

Want to have fun, go in a supermarket, get in a crowded area, and say, darn, I voted for Obama, and I can no longer afford gas, are food, wonder what's wrong with him.
Then just stand around and enjoy.
I had a ball at Wally World today, it was packed.
Wonder were were all those, Obama is in bed with big oil letters are, they were a fixture when Bush was in office, when gas spiked for a short time.
Guess move on does not like Obama letters, you just don't see them.
Have a great week end.

April 22, 2011 - 11:32 pm EDT

Yes, put all the blame on one person, the president. Unfortunately he thought that everyone in the Congress wanted to help work on the problems of the country. I guess he didn't forsee that the opposition was working harder to make him look like a failure rather than helping the people and the nations problems. If the politicians of this country can't work together for the people, then we do not have much of a future.

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