Comments about ‘Utah gasoline prices are lowest in U.S.’

@Rebe: Learn about what octane ratings mean before you go complaining about them.

Utah and many other mountain states sell lower octane gasoline because of altitude. Air here is less dense, having fewer oxygen molecules per cubic foot than air at sea level. A larger quantity of air is required to achieve complete combustion of a given grade of gasoline, therefore lower octane ratings are desirable here.

85 octane burns just as well here as 87 octane does in Vegas.

@m.g. scott: You have to look at it comparatively, not on a scale of dollars.

In 1970 the cost of a gallon of regular gas was 35 cents. Today it is $3.50, a 1000% increase.

The cost of a new car has increased 700%.

The cost of a home has increased 900%.

Meanwhile median household income has only increased by 500%.

Overall, the people of America are getting poorer as the years go by.

@DeltaFoxtrot

You seem to have missed my first point. I started with gas prices at one dollar in the mid 70s. And if you want to know why we are getting poorer then look to taxes first. A large part of the price of gas is in the taxes. And there are lots of other hidden taxes that people don't seem to take into account. It is not just income taxes that cost us. It has been the state and federal governments who overspend and won't budget that take the most out of our 500% increase.