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"Currently, only about one fourth of gas stations in North Carolina (where I am) are reporting that they have any gas." But this was mainly because of panic buy

by not2b 5y ago

"Currently, only about one fourth of gas stations in North Carolina (where I am) are reporting that they have any gas." But this was mainly because of panic buying. The pipeline shutdown alone didn't suffice to cause the shortage.

tpmx 5y ago
"Mainly because of panic buying". Is there a credible source on that? The average person has a pretty small abilility to store gas, even in NC.
- at_compile_time 5y ago
  Supposing that the average person has half a tank of gas, is there enough supply for everyone to fill up on the same day? It doesn't seem unreasonable for the situation to be a combination of reduced supply and increased demand.
  - tpmx 5y ago
    The pipeline has been out of action for six days now, though. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Pipeline_cyberattack https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Pipeline_cyberattack About 45% of all fuel consumed on the East Coast arrives via the pipeline system.
    - wahern 5y ago
      According to Wikipedia the system has significant buffer capacity: > Fifteen associated tank farms... provide a 45-day supply for local communities. Such buffer capacity makes sense considering how long deliveries actually take: > It generally takes from 14 to 24 days for a batch to get from Houston, Texas to the New York harbor, with 18.5 days the average time. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Pipeline https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Pipeline Also consider where the shortages are occurring: in sprawling, rural and exurban areas where the last-mile infrastructure is likely exceptionally thin; that is, much less able to handle surges. It's not just computer and car manufacturers that optimize for "on-demand inventory"--i.e. cut carry costs to the bone, sacrificing volatility resilience.
- averagemedian 5y ago
  But there are a lot of average persons. If a whole bunch of average persons starts buying up gas, toilet paper or withdraw money from the bank all at the same time ( the key point being at the same time relatively speaking ), the gas station, store or bank will be out of product/service very soon. I'd imagine, on a given day, only a small fraction of car owners in a particular vicinity fill their tanks.

by not2b 5y ago

tpmx 5y ago

"Mainly because of panic buying". Is there a credible source on that? The average person has a pretty small abilility to store gas, even in NC.

at_compile_time 5y ago
Supposing that the average person has half a tank of gas, is there enough supply for everyone to fill up on the same day? It doesn't seem unreasonable for the situation to be a combination of reduced supply and increased demand.
- tpmx 5y ago
  The pipeline has been out of action for six days now, though. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Pipeline_cyberattack https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Pipeline_cyberattack About 45% of all fuel consumed on the East Coast arrives via the pipeline system.
  - wahern 5y ago
    According to Wikipedia the system has significant buffer capacity: > Fifteen associated tank farms... provide a 45-day supply for local communities. Such buffer capacity makes sense considering how long deliveries actually take: > It generally takes from 14 to 24 days for a batch to get from Houston, Texas to the New York harbor, with 18.5 days the average time. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Pipeline https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_Pipeline Also consider where the shortages are occurring: in sprawling, rural and exurban areas where the last-mile infrastructure is likely exceptionally thin; that is, much less able to handle surges. It's not just computer and car manufacturers that optimize for "on-demand inventory"--i.e. cut carry costs to the bone, sacrificing volatility resilience.
averagemedian 5y ago
But there are a lot of average persons. If a whole bunch of average persons starts buying up gas, toilet paper or withdraw money from the bank all at the same time ( the key point being at the same time relatively speaking ), the gas station, store or bank will be out of product/service very soon. I'd imagine, on a given day, only a small fraction of car owners in a particular vicinity fill their tanks.