Griping at the pumps continued this week as gas prices reached an all-time high, crushing previous records. After the $3 mark, prices have been on a steady incline each week.

According to www.cnnmoney.com, the Midwest now has the highest gas prices in the country. Illinois leads the way, dishing out an average of $3.49 for a gallon of gas, but Ames isn’t too far behind. The highest price of regular gas seen in Ames so far has been $3.42 per gallon.

Amanda Merideth, junior in dietetics, said she hopes there will be a change soon.

“It is ridiculous. People with real paying jobs can’t even afford gas,” she said.

According to a CNN report, one of the core problems is refineries having a large number of production problems caused by fires and mechanical difficulties, which have forced gas prices to climb because of high demand and low supply. Texas, Alaska and Oklahoma refineries are just a few suffering from production troubles.

Solving these problems by building more refineries seems to be the most obvious solution.

However, a refinery hasn’t been built in the United States in the last 30 years. They take nearly six years to build and are very costly to construct.

Small, more fuel-efficient cars appeared to be the solution for saving money in the past, but now even this seems to be slipping.

Alexandra Moore, junior in health and human performance, was outraged when it cost $40 to fill up her Nissan Altima.

Moore said she usually works 20 to 30 hours a week and anywhere from a third to a half of her money goes to gas alone. She said she is hoping for a change shortly.

“We should definitely be finding alternative energy solutions,” she said.

Consumers not able to afford the rising prices can look to save money by using other modes of transportation.

Sheri Kyras, transportation director of CyRide, said CyRide’s operation has seen an increase of 10 percent in people riding the bus since last summer.

Bob Rice, sales manager at Zylstra Cycle Co., 1930 E. 13th St., said sales have been remarkably high this year.

Although this may partly be due to the nice weather in the past month and motorcycles’ growing popularity, Rice also said it may be because consumers are looking for cheaper alternatives for travel.

Motorcycles average anywhere from 40 to 50 mpg, with a 3.5- to 5-gallon tank, while most cars average 20 to 25 miles per gallon with a 10- to 16-gallon tank.

Rice said he is still astounded by how much people are paying to fill up their bikes.

“I remember when it use to cost $5 to fill up your bike. Now it’s about $16. It’s crazy.”

Rice said he has heard constant complaining from customers about the high price of gas but has also noticed more workers traveling by bike, when weather permits.

Bike World, 126 S. Third St., is also experiencing more activity than in previous years.

Eric Grootzeld, sales representative at Bike World, said he’s not sure if the increase in sales is attributable to high gas prices, but he knows from talking with customers that people are upset about the high gas prices.

Grootzeld said a majority of employees bike to work daily and travel anywhere from two to six miles one way.

Grootzeld speculated gas prices would have to hit extremely high prices to make nonbikers consider this mode of transportation more seriously.

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