The perennial problem of rising gas prices is an issue that all UM students face. It hits incoming freshman commuter students especially hard.
According to gasbuddy.com, the average price of regular gas at the pump in Miami is $3.68, with prices in the Coral Gables area often reaching $3.85 per gallon.
In an effort to save money, many commuters carpool when they can. Some students take saving money a step further.
“To get more miles per gallon, I changed my spark plugs and got rid of excess weight in my car,” freshman commuter Joseph Ryan Socarras said.
The rising prices cause problems for students’ lives as well as their wallets.
“My best friend lives in Kendall and I live much farther north, so it’s difficult for us to hang out often,” freshman commuter Hector Castaneda said. “I don’t want to waste gas.”
According to nyse.tv, crude oil prices have dropped to about $85.37 per barrel as of August 2011, much lower than the prices of about $100 per barrel that were seen earlier this year.
Unfortunately for students, this does not equate to a drop in gas prices. Since gasoline is a refined form of crude oil, its price is not just set by the cost of its raw materials, but its production, distribution and other factors.
“It sucks,” freshman commuter Tahreem Hashmi said. “Why isn’t it dropping? It’s frustrating, especially as a commuter student.”