Brother can you spare a quarter? Why is gas cheaper in the burbs?
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While driving down Highway 280 last night, I was taken aback at the price of gasoline. Traveling south just past the Best Buy/Target shopping area, I spotted this BP/Circle K (below) selling gas at $1.93 a gallon. It wasn’t a fluke. Further down Highway 280 there were additional stations selling regular gas between $1.93 to $1.99.
When I traveled back to Birmingham on the same evening, I took this snapshot of the price for regular gas at Southside’s Tom & Jerry’s Chevron.
A 26 cents difference.
After taking that photo, I remembered earlier in the day passing a Chevron convenience store/gas station in Homewood off Oxmoor Road next to Dawson Memorial Baptist Church that was selling regular gas at $2.32 a gallon. Below is a photo of their sign from last night.
A 39 cents a gallon difference between the Homewood station and the Circle K on 280.
In the coming days, as a result of the Colonial Pipeline explosion, gas prices are expected to increase and fluctuate throughout the Southeast.
Once gas prices stabilize in the coming weeks, shouldn’t we ask the question – Why do gas prices vary so wildly in the Birmingham Metro area, especially between the outer suburbs and Birmingham (closer you get to downtown)?
