While we were away, the retail price of a gallon of gasoline jumped from around $3.799 to $3.999, with some locations selling for $4.059. In Florida over the same span, the price increased approximately $0.03. Fuel taxes in New York are interesting in that in addition to a flat per-gallon tax there is also a sales tax of roughly 8.125%, split between the county and the state, so a small shift in the wholesale price results in a relatively substantial change in the price at the pump.
It’s been noted elsewhere that demand for gasoline over the short term is inelastic, but over the long term is elastic. (I suppose the terms “rigid” and “flexible” would have been too obvious for jargon.) Simply put, our habitual behavior is hard to break. And the costs of switching are high, whether in time or in money.
This morning the girls missed the school bus, so I walked with them to the last stop on the route, which is about a quarter-mile away. The other parents bundled their children into their cars, then drove the 100 feet from the garage to the bus stop.