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Pulling into the gas station to fill up is something that hurts more and more every day. So, some drivers just aren't doing it and are running out of gas while on the roads.
The number of drivers who ran out of gas on the interstates and highways of Northern Utah has almost doubled. The Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) tracks calls for gas assistance and thinks the only reason why those numbers are up is because gas prices are up.
Unlike most of us, after Alan Peterson drives to work, he then has to drive for work. That's because he's a lead incident management worker for UDOT, which is really just a fancy way to say he helps drivers; and lately, a lot of that help is with gas. "The part that I really enjoy is that I get to help people," he says.
He says there's been an increase in the people who have run out of gas. He's not kidding. Peterson says last May, his team handed out 62 gallons of gas spread out over 562 calls for help. "And May of this year, we had 448, and we handed out 102 gallons of gas," he said.
So even though fewer people asked for help, more of those who did specifically needed gas. He says, "We'll give them a gallon, enough to get off the interstate."
Peterson says that makes it hard for his crews to help other drivers. "We carry four gallons on each one of our trucks, and in the Salt Lake area there are six trucks. So, if everybody's running out of gas, then we have to take a break and go fill up our gas cans," Peterson said.
He also thinks he knows why so many people are running out. He passes that reason everyday.
Gas prices have shot up faster than a bullet bike, and rather then fill up when they get close to empty, many drivers are trying to avoid the pumps and stretch that orange needle to as close to empty as possible. Peterson says, "They think they got enough gas to get where they're going, and unfortunately they get out here on the interstate and run out of gas."
It may seem silly, and Peterson says many drivers he has helped are embarrassed. Many of the drivers tell him they ran out because they couldn't afford to fill up. He's just worried about people running out and then walking. He says, ‘It's just not worth their life."
Peterson says he carries about four gallons of gas with him at a time. Again, he gives drivers about a gallon, so they can get to a gas station.
E-mail: bbruce@ksl.com
E-mail: acabrero@ksl.com
