Ways To Stretch Your Dollar And Save On Gas

The AAA Gas Prices website reports that the current (as of 3/11) price of regular unleaded gasoline in New York State is $4.465. The National average is $4.331. In the Binghamton area, the average is $4.439. One Year ago, AAA shows we were paying an average of $2.850 a gallon. That's a difference of $1.59 more per gallon. And last year, we thought that price was too high.

In Pennsylvania, the current average is $4.439. In Bradford County, the average is $4.502 and in Susquehanna County, it's $4.499. Those prices aren't much higher than the Binghamton area. They used to be 15 to 20 cents higher per gallon.

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So, what do we, as consumers who need gasoline to get around, make it a bit less painful at the pump? Well, the U.S. Department of Energy has a few things that may help you get more mileage out of your tank of gas.

Suggestions include turning off your engine when idling for more than 10 seconds. Depending on the size of your engine and air-conditioner use, an idling vehicle can use up to a half gallon of fuel per hour.

Another good idea from the U.S. Department of Energy - take out any unnecessary heavy items in your vehicle. They mention that for every 100 pounds of whatever is in your vehicle, could increase gas costs up by $.03 cents per gallon.

Also, and I'm sure several people will not be happy about this - Slow down and stop aggressive driving! To quote the U.S. Department of Energy :

Aggressive driving can lower your highway gas mileage by 15% to 30% and your city mileage by 10% to 40%. Avoid driving at high speeds. Above 50 mph, gas mileage drops rapidly. For every 5 mph above 50 mph, it's like paying an additional $0.22 per gallon of gasoline.

Keeping regular maintenance up on your vehicle, and making sure your tires are properly inflated will also help. Obviously, it's your choice, but if you want to stretch those dollars on gasoline costs, try these tips.

For more tips and information, visit the U.S. Department of Energy and AAA Gas Prices website.

via AAA Gas Prices, U.S. Department of Energy

LOOK: See how much gasoline cost the year you started driving

To find out more about how has the price of gas changed throughout the years, Stacker ran the numbers on the cost of a gallon of gasoline for each of the last 84 years. Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (released in April 2020), we analyzed the average price for a gallon of unleaded regular gasoline from 1976 to 2020 along with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for unleaded regular gasoline from 1937 to 1976, including the absolute and inflation-adjusted prices for each year.

Read on to explore the cost of gas over time and rediscover just how much a gallon was when you first started driving.