Metro ridership increases alongside soaring gas prices
Gas prices in the Los Angeles area jumped nearly $.05 overnight, bringing the record-breaking average to $6.23 per gallon, and according to the latest Metro numbers, bus and train ridership continues to climb alongside fuel prices.
Unfortunately, experts have said that the soaring gas prices won't be going down any time soon.
"Oh my god, they're outrageous," driver Sheryl Norris told CBSLA. "I mean, I saw them for like $7, $8. It takes a fortune — you see how small my car is — to fill my car up. Isn't that something.
Even $6 a gallon may now feel like a bargain, considering the line of cars outside a Lakewood Costco waiting for the discounted fuel.
"It's up $.17 from a week ago, $.44 from a month ago and it's $2.04 a gallon higher than this time a year ago," Doug Shupe, spokesperson for AAA of Southern California, said. "To put that into perspective, someone with a typical midsize sedan with a 14-gallon size fuel tank, they are paying almost $29 more to fill up that same tank of gas today than last year at this time."
Even as peak driving season starts, there's no immediate relief.
"If Memorial Day numbers are any indication of what's to come, people are still going to be taking those road trips even with these higher pump prices," Shupe said.
Some people, however, are scaling back and that might account for a spike in bus and rail riders. Metro reports that its ridership soared to more than 21 million boardings in April. That's up from 17 million from this time last year. Some of that, according to Metro, might be that people are getting back to work.
A mother of small children, Almendra Modesto said gas prices are straining her budget.
"It's getting very expensive. It's double what I used to pay even last year," she said.
Modesto said she was forced to use the bus after her car broke down. Asked if the high gas prices would make her consider using the bus more often, she said it's still not as easy to get around.
"I would if it was more convenient," Modesto said, "but to even get to a bus or Metro station, it still takes me at least a mile to get to a station."
However, Modesto did point out that her commute from Gardena to Encino only cost her $5, which is less than a gallon of gas.
Experts at AAA said if you do have to commute, fuel efficiency generally caps out at 55 mph, so you can save money if you slow down.
