Gas station shocks drivers with prices near $10 a gallon
By Ricardo Tovar
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BIG SUR, California (KSBW) — As drivers feel the pain at the gas pump, some are getting sticker shock when they pull in for gas in the coastal hamlet of Gorda-by-the-Sea on the Big Sur coast.
“That’s insane. I just saw it right now, and I couldn’t believe it. It’s not something I’m used to,” said Gustavo Fraga, traveling north from Los Angeles.
“I’m a tourist, but for me, that’s too high — too expensive,” said Diego Monge, visiting from El Salvador.
What is too expensive? How about $10 for premium, $9.70 for plus, and $9.40 for regular, the cheapest option.
“Over there in L.A., we’re at about, like, $6 max, which is something that, you know, hits everyone like crazy. But here it’s $10. I’ve never seen that, ever,” said Fraga.
And most people never will — unless they’re traveling along the scenic Big Sur coast, where there are few gas stations in between. Gorda Gas is often mentioned as having the highest gas prices not just in the state, but in the country.
We asked the station owner what he tells customers when they ask why his prices are so high.
“Well, I always tell them the high prices are because we run the place on generators. We don’t have power — we create our own power here,” said gas station owner Leo Flores.
The price of diesel Flores needs to power his generators is also on the rise. But another reason, Flores says, is that his gas is hauled in from Fresno, more than 100 miles away.
At more than $9 a gallon, not everyone is filling up the tank. Customers are usually pumping less than three gallons — just enough to get to a cheaper station.
“They probably could charge $20 a gallon, and if you have to get gas, you have to get gas,” said Debbie Carignan, traveling from Southern California.
Don’t expect to see $20-a-gallon gas in Gorda. That’s because the owner is limited by the number of digits on his gas pumps, so for now, $9.99 is the max.
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