Letter to the editor: How rising gas prices are draining your wallet

Much concern has been expressed by vehicle owners across Montana and throughout the country about the price of gas, which has increased $1.50 per gallon since the outbreak of the war with Iran. Let’s look beyond just the price per gallon and take a look at the actual bite out of your budget over time. Let us use the following hypothetical example: assume you drive to and from work five days a week. The round trip is 20 miles, and your vehicle averages 25 mpg. The work-week cost increase is 100 miles driven divided by 25 mpg, which equals four gallons. Multiply that by $1.50/gallon and you have $6. On the weekend you drive 50 miles, adding $3 more for a total-week cost increase of $9.

In the 12 weeks since the outbreak of the war your cost increase has been $108. Should the war continue until the county’s 250th birthday, your cost is $234. You can call this your "War Tax."

However, if you are a two- or three-vehicle family, where the adults both travel to work and you have a child who drives to school, your “War Tax” increases. You can plug in your own numbers and find your personal amount. In economics this is called an opportunity cost. The money you choose to spend on your “War Tax” is no longer available to spend on other things you want. The only way to reduce your War Tax is to drive less. Tough choice for working folks!

Bob Hendricks, 

Missoula