BRONX TIMES REPORTER, M BTR MAR. 11-17, 2022 9
“Oil demand is returning to pre-
Covid levels, and it is likely to rise
throughout this decade,” said longtime
U.S. Diplomat David Rundel.
“Russia and Saudi Arabia are the
world’s two largest oil exporters. The
energy axis that has emerged between
Beijing, Moscow and Riyadh is based
on solid economic interests and has begun
to develop a political component.”
As of late 2021, the U.S. was importing
8.5 million barrels per day of crude
oil from other countries, and keeping
up with that demand — with the threat
of more sanctions and geopolitical
drama — might create even more for
the world’s top oil producers.
“This is the time to go outside and
travel for most people, given how long
they were at home for, and Americans
are spending more during the highest
rate of infl ation,” said De Haan. “People
are still spending money on fuel
and that demand isn’t going away. But
the major wild cards are oil production
and how it catches up to OPEC and
rising political tensions.”
For those at the pump like JoDell
Green, a North Riverdale resident who
drives 50 minute to work every week,
fi nding the cheapest gas prices in her
neighborhood is a proving to be an everyday
challenge.
“You drive by one (gas station) and
you see it’s risen to $4.50, and then the
next week it’s $4.70, and did I miss a
memo or meeting where we were clamoring
to pay this much for gas?” she
said.
Some Bronxites are fi nding some
prime spots for affordable refi lls such
a BP in the Allerton section that many
are hailing as the cheapest in the borough
with prices in the low-to-mid $3
range per gallon.
Others like Sean Russell, a community
college student who pumps air for
his bike at a Shell in the Parkchester
section, has a simpler advice: fi nd a
new mode of transportation.
“We’re in New York City and if you
work in the city, why are you driving
anyway? We have a public transit system
and bike lanes, there’s no excuse
to pay ridiculous amounts of money
at a gas station,” he said. “We know
that the entire oil industry is doing irreversible
harm, so make them more
money if you want to … I just stick to
my bike and save my money.”
With gas prices hitting as high as $5 a gallon
at certain pumps in the Bronx, gas experts
say prices are at its highest since 2014.
Photos Adrian Childress
Some gas prices have Bronx residents grimacing.