May 7th, 2008 06:03pm
Thomas V. Bona
Let’s start with a little humorous FAQ about the proposed gas-tax holiday, courtesy of 23/6
Now on to the serious stuff (Data, as always, courtesy of AAA’s fuelgaugereport.com):
Gasoline: Rockford continued its record run, increasing two cents to $3.70 a gallon. Prices here have risen about 35 cents in the past month. Every metro area in Illinois increased other than the Quad Cities, which stood pat. The state average increased almost two cents to a record $3.76 today, a 30 cent hike in the past month. Rockford has the third-highest prices in the state. The national average increased almost a cent to $3.62, half a cent shy of the record set last week. Illinois has the sixth-highest gas prices in the nation.
Diesel: Rockford stayed at $4.31 a gallon today, a cent shy of the record set just over a week ago. The price has gone up nearly 29 cents in the past month. The state average increased almost a cent to $4.32 a gallon, just shy of the record set last week. That price has gone up about 19 cents in the past month. We have the third-highest diesel prices in the state. The national average increased half a cent to $4.24 a gallon, a cent below last week’s record. The national average has gone up almost 24 cents in the past month. Illinois has the 16th-highest prices in the country.
May 6th, 2008 06:33pm
Thomas V. Bona
Sorry to be gone for so long. I’m been swamped by stories about high fuel prices, commuter rail updates and airport news. A fun time, all around. I’ll restart my “fuel price musings” tomorrow.
Here are some quick hits until then:
April 17th, 2008 09:31am
Thomas V. Bona
My wife and I do a weekly pub quiz in Loves Park. Good times. Last night, one of the questions should have been in my wheelhouse, but stumped me. See if you can get it.
What colorful airline was the first major U.S. carrier to declare bankruptcy, in 1982?
No looking it up online!
April 16th, 2008 05:06pm
Thomas V. Bona
My favorite part:
In addition to the added convenience, the shuttle buses offer improved dining and meal service, with passengers getting a choice between Arby’s, Roy Rogers and Dunkin’ Donuts, at more than 500 rest areas across the country. Complimentary snacks and beverages are also be distributed to all travelers, depending on when and where the shuttle bus stops for gas.
The buses are capable of making emergency breaks by the side of the highway if required—a feature Southwest officials say passengers will prefer to cramped airplane toilets. According to Miller, exciting new entertainment options—such as asking the shuttle’s captain to change the radio station—will replace in-flight films.
April 16th, 2008 04:50pm
Thomas V. Bona
I have nothing to add to all the talk about the Delta/Northwest merger other than:
- I’m glad my meager Northwest miles will still count.
- We’ll no longer have “Northwest” to come to RFD and leave suddenly. Maybe Delta will keep up the tradition in a few years.
- Airfare will probably go up as consolidation continues.
- Well at least neither closed down.
Here are three interesting takes on the news (warning: the first two have … colorful … language):
23/6 takes a humorous stab at “explaining” things
The Cranky Flier weighs in with typical insight
The AP takes a “nuts and bolts” look on the effect on travelers
April 16th, 2008 02:34pm
Thomas V. Bona
It’s been a few weeks of surprises in the airline industry, but chalk this up as a pleasant surprise. Allegiant Air announced today it’ll start offering seasonal flights from Bellingham, Wash., to both San Francisco and San Diego. It’s a rare announcement of growth from an airline. Then again, Allegiant is pretty rare in that it’s still turning a profit amid high fuel prices.
This doesn’t directly benefit Chicago Rockford International Airport and I wouldn’t expect us to gain that California service, at least not in the foreseeable future. Allegiant is trying to keep its routes shorter, and recently expanded its Bellingham operation to base aircraft there. Bellingham already is the only Allegiant city to fly to Reno, and used to be the only one to go to Lake Tahoe, Nev., so there’s precedent.
It’s good for us in that Allegiant continues to exhibit a solid business and growth model, which stabilizes its existing routes. Also, it shows a willingness to do special routes not involving “focus cities”, so perhaps there’s hope of future routes from RFD to cities that are less than 1,000 miles away…
April 16th, 2008 09:20am
Thomas V. Bona
Well, despite a number of local gas stations reaching near $3.55 a gallon yesterday we didn’t reach a record for the entire metro area. But we’re real close (Data courtesy of AAA’s fuelgaugereport.com):
Gasoline: Rockford increased two cents to $3.45 a gallon today, only one cent from our record set back in May. Every single metro area in Illinois increased on news of record crude oil prices. East St. Louis is at a record of almost $3.59 a gallon, while a couple other metro areas set records in past days. The state average increased almost two cents to a record $3.52 today. Rockford has the fourth-highest prices in the state. The national average has set records for about all of the past week, and increased more than a cent to an unheard-of $3.40 a gallon today. Illinois has the sixth-highest gas prices in the nation.
Diesel: More records here. Rockford increased more than a cent to a record $4.17 a gallon today. Some other metro areas increased, some decreased and some stood pat. The state average increased half a cent to $4.21 a gallon, just shy of the record set Monday. We have the fourth-highest diesel prices in the state. The nation increased its record average a cent to $4.13 a gallon. Illinois is tied for the 14th-highest prices in the country.
April 11th, 2008 04:56pm
Thomas V. Bona
A (brief?) reprieve in Rockford (Data courtesy of AAA’s fuelgaugereport.com):
Gasoline: Rockford dropped less than a cent and stands at $3.43 a gallon today, while most of the state and nation increased. The state average jumped a cent to $3.48 today, four cents from its record. Rockford has the fourth-highest prices in the state (Springfield just passed us and is also around $3.43 a gallon). The national average continued to set records, increasing a cent to $3.37 a gallon. Illinois has the sixth-highest gas prices in the nation. Perhaps Rockford already saw its spike earlier in the week? Or is our spike yet to come?
Diesel: Rockford dropped more than two cents to $4.10 a gallon today , while most of the state increased. The state average increased almost two cents to tie a record at almost $4.16 a gallon. We have the third -highest diesel prices in the state. The nation jumped two cents to a record $4.07 a gallon. Illinois is tied for the 13th-highest prices in the country.
April 10th, 2008 06:48pm
Thomas V. Bona
Allegiant Air, the largest carrier at Chicago Rockford International Airport, has had a good week at a time when many airlines have crash-landed. Today it announced it was buying six more planes to expand its fleet to 41 next year and 43 in 2009. Spokeswoman Tyri Squyres told me the airline was looking at ways to keep growing, even with high fuel prices and a soft economy. Not all the planes will be used for the airline’s regularly scheduled route network; some will be used for its charter program, including its popular flights to Harrah’s Entertainment casinos in Reno and Laughlin, Nev., and in Tunica, Miss. She said they’ll also look at other leisure destinations, but will focus more on filling in the gaps in its existing network.
That probably means the new airplanes won’t directly benefit Rockford with new destinations, at least not in the near future. But it’s good news that the primary airline here is in strong enough financial shape to pay straight cash for six airplanes.
The other good news is that Allegiant is staying in Greensboro, N.C., after Skybus’ announcement that is was going bankrupt. Allegiant officials said the competition from ultra-low-cost Skybus was a reason for its decision last month to pull service from Greensboro.
The change of mind lead to the quote of the day, from Robert Ashcroft, vice president of planning for Allegiant: “We preferred to stay clear of a company acting in ways we did not understand.”
Sound business advice.
April 10th, 2008 11:12am
Thomas V. Bona
Records fall on both sides. A couple key takeaways from the AP article:
Gasoline prices normally rise during the spring as people travel more. However, the record pump prices have also been supported by high crude prices as shrinking profit margins cause refiners to pull back on production.
and
United Parcel Service, a major shipping company, reduced its first-quarter earnings predictions because of the high price of fuel.
More on UPS later today, but for now, here’s the damage (Data courtesy of AAA’s fuelgaugereport.com):
Gasoline: Rockford dropped two cents to $3.43 a gallon today, perhaps just delaying a record-setting price. The state average increased a cent to $3.47 today, five cents from its record. Rockford maintains the third-highest prices in the state, while Illinois has the sixth-highest gas prices in the country. The national average jumped another cent and then some, hitting a record $3.36 a gallon.
Diesel: Rockford jumped four cents to $4.12 a gallon today and has risen 10 cents this week. The state average increased a fraction of a cent today and remains at $4.14 a gallon, less than two cents shy of its record. We still have the second-highest diesel prices in the state now, behind only Chicago (which stays at $4.25). The nation jumped more than a cent to a record $4.05 a gallon. Illinois has the 14th-highest prices in the country.
Previous Posts
