Rising Gas Prices Hitting All Businesses

Have you looked at the price of gas lately? If you’ve gone to fill up your car recently, you’ve probably discovered that the price is one the rise.

According to The Washington Post, Jeb Lopez started a business ferrying auto parts from suppliers to dealers six months ago. Because of the price of gas, he’s already dipping into his emergency fund.

Lopez is among other local business owners who say the rapidly rising price of gas is taking a bite out of their profits and posing a strategic challenge. The price has jumped dramatically, from a national average for a gallon of regular gas of $3.12 one month ago to $3.54 as of Friday, according to AAA.

The average price of regular gas hit $3.52 in Maryland and $3.46 in Virginia last week.

“It affects everybody, from cab drivers … to pizza delivery guys,” said John Townsend, a spokesman at AAA Mid-Atlantic. “They’re all impacted by this.”

Lopez’s drivers are using iPhone apps to try to find the cheapest gas in the area and waiting until they reach the more distant suburbs, which often have lower prices, to fill up the vans’ tanks. In some cases, Lopez has tried to group routes to save miles, but he said the urgency associated with delivering many parts limits his ability to do that.

Photo by Beatrice Murch

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