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adilakif t1_j9tloj5 wrote

I would like the option to pump my own gas, thank you very much.

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chazzlabs t1_j9tmqa7 wrote

Same. I honestly kind of love pumping my own gas when I'm out of state. At least give me the option here.

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ManInKilt t1_j9tnkc5 wrote

Same, it'll be cheaper and i don't have my gas cap slapping my paint

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adilakif t1_j9tnwha wrote

They drop some gas on the paint when they take out the nozzle.

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Fallen_Mercury t1_j9ui8ft wrote

Why would it be cheaper?

(To clarify: I do think we should be able to pump our own gas. Just don't see how that would be any cheaper.)

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ManInKilt t1_j9vlv51 wrote

Because now the business selling me gas isn't legally required to hire extra positions, so they can forgo that for lower business expenses and cut their prices a bit to be more competitive against other stations thus making for cheaper gas

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Fallen_Mercury t1_j9zdbyg wrote

I see no reason for us to legally ban self-service. Give businesses and consumers that freedom. It's not like cars and stations are exploding across the country. Maybe it made more sense years ago, but stations are generally safe. It's an archaic and unnecessary law. But my position has nothing to do with costs.

The savings you predict only makes sense if the stations are trying to set the lowest possible price. Businesses aim to set the highest price while still maintaining demand. So I can't see these savings happening in any meaningful way.

What you said may happen, but it would only be a short-term fluctuation. The stations would adjust accordingly and then prices would creep back up because they would ultimately adjust according to demand (which ain't going nowhere anytime soon).

So if we do this, okay, station A lowers its prices because it has a sudden surplus. Station B loses some customers (it doesn't lose all of its customers because some people are loyal to brands or maybe they enjoy the shorter line for a few cents more). Maybe Station B gets some of Station's A's customers who want the service. Maybe Station B eventually gives in and lowers prices to be more competitive and everything is close to uniform again. (But none of these details really matter in the grand scheme because both stations know their customers will pay more if they push prices up, so they both gradually creep back to where they would have been all along.)

Demand is the ultimate factor here and all the stations will tinker with their prices to extract the maximum price out of you. So maybe you'll save a bit in the short term, but they'll get you right where they want you while providing fewer local jobs and offering you less service.

In not so many words, I agree with you, but I don't agree for the same reasons gif

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soundfreely t1_j9u2z2q wrote

I wish I could pump my own too. Ironically, there’s a gas station in Budd Lake that I avoid because I don’t want to take on damage from one of the more reckless attendants.

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vferg t1_j9v4izm wrote

Yeah, I am tired of half the time getting someone who looks pissed off that they have to do this.

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Analog_2_Digital t1_j9u4xwm wrote

I live in PA now and prefer pumping my own gas but we also have giant Sheetz/Wawa's on every corner with like a minimum of 12 pumps at each. A lot of the NJ gas stations I remember growing up were smaller 4 pump stations. With the amount of people compared to the size of the stations, I feel like they'd get jammed up pretty fast. Especially with assholes who are done filling up but sit there hogging the pump while they text or go inside to take a dump or something. At least with attendants they can ask people to move and help maintain flow of traffic. I think NJ stations would need to be bigger for it to be practical there.

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Creepy-Ad-5440 t1_j9tnnuc wrote

Option granted. Just not sure what happens once you use this option.

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adilakif t1_j9tnylz wrote

They threatened to call the cops if I did it again.

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