The lowest gasoline prices in East Lansing Wednesday evening were $3.19 at Speedway, 7765 E. Old M-78, $3.19 at Admiral, 7227 E. M-78 and $3.19 at Meijer, 7149 E. Saginaw Highway, according to Lansinggasprices.com.

But as many East Lansing residents fill up their tank, smaller gasoline stations are taking the hit.
Jim Little, the owner of H&H Mobil, said his gasoline station, located at 1500 Haslett Road, lost between $0.12 and $0.14 per gallon of gasoline sold Wednesday.

Because he bought his gasoline at a higher price than what he is selling it for, on a day of business worth about $4,000 to $5,000, that change adds up to a large loss.

“When (the price) goes down as fast as it did, it really hurts,” Little said.

Economics professor Charles Ballard said the pain Little’s business and other small gasoline stations are feeling is somewhat out of their control because small businesses do not determine prices.

“The local retailer is this little guy at the end of this long chain of events where the oil is coming from all over the world,” Ballard said.

The currently low gasoline prices are somewhat common for the fall, he said.

“First, the summer vacation driving season has come to an end, and this tends to mean a reduction in demand for gasoline,” Ballard said. “Second, many refineries switch to a different formulation during the summer in an effort to reduce air pollution. When they switch back in the fall, this can lead to some moderation in gasoline prices.”

He said there is no way to estimate how long gasoline prices will be this low, as many factors in the Middle East affect gasoline prices locally.

Kelly said she will continue to take advantage of the low gasoline prices while she still can.

“The price definitely impacts where I go and how often I go to certain places — if they’re super high, I don’t go out as much in my car,” Kelly said.