Where to Buy Cheap Gas in Baltimore, Maryland

Per cheap gas, Baltimore actually triumphs in regards to the everlasting Baltimore - Washington rivalry. Baltimore prices dramatically undercut the prevailing readings at Washington and the Montgomery - Prince Georges County suburbs. Today, Baltimore regular grade gasoline flashes $2.495, which compares favorably to Washington, D.C.'s $2.594 mark.

Baltimore, Maryland gas is relatively cheap alongside the July 6, 2009 nationwide U.S. Department of Energy estimates of $2.612 per gallon. Nationally, prices at the pump are set in regards to geographic distance to critical Gulf Coast energy infrastructure and state gas tax policy.

Baltimore motorists benefit from regional access to oil refinery complexes at Wilmington and Philadelphia, and the sweeping Port of Baltimore facilities, which ease the transport of petroleum products into the area.

The Annapolis tax regime is also favorable to Maryland drivers. According to the American Petroleum Institute, Marylanders pay 41.9 cents per gallon of taxes at the register as a function of both Federal and State excise taxes. This calculation lies slightly beneath the 45.6-cent National average.

Locally, Baltimore gas prices are more so determined by commuter access to Baltimore's fragmented expressway network, rather than immediate economics.

We must highlight the difference separating local traffic arteries, such as I-83 / Jones Falls Expressway (JFX) and the Baltimore Beltway, from I-95 and I-895, which are more so conduits for East Coast travelers.

Baltimore drivers must recognize the intricacies of the gas price matrix in Charm City and move accordingly.

This guide will proceed to detail locations and viable service stations where Maryland consumers will secure cheap gas. We will begin by highlighting the most expensive areas to purchase fuel, and close by presenting intelligent suggestions to combat the cheap gas proposal.

Where NOT to buy gas in Baltimore

Do not buy gas in Howard County, or at Baltimore's major bottlenecks for local traffic.

Howard County represents a bedroom community that lies halfway between Baltimore and Washington and is remarkably underrated in terms of its status as a safe haven for the upper middle class. I must speculate that few onlookers would ever identify Howard County as a stalwart of the top-10 wealthiest counties in the United States.

Ellicott City and Columbia, MD form a pocket of expensive gas at Howard County. Howard prices range from $2.55 - $2.60 within these suburban zones at the time of this writing. The Columbia Exxon is hawking $2.59 gas at 8850 Centre Park Drive, while the Ellicott City Texaco flashes $2.57 at 9320 Baltimore National Pike.

Howard County residents will note that gas prices plunge towards the center of the county and east of I-95. Maryland favorite Freestate is moving cheap gas for $2.35 in Clarksville and Exxon is posting $2.45 for regular octane in Jessup at MD 175.

Of course, Baltimore drivers must never venture into Howard County to buy gasoline. Even Washingtonians would be better served buying gas at Burtonsville or Laurel, MD, where prices drop beneath $2.40.

Baltimore City drivers should also dismiss buying gas at the I-83 / Jones Falls Expressway and the I-695 / Reisterstown Road junction.

MD 140 / Reisterstown represents a critical arterial for Owings Mills and Reisterstown traffic into the City. Owings Mills is an exclusive corporate and residential center that locals will identify with MotorWeek and the palatial estates of Baltimore Raven footballers.

The Reisterstown Road / Beltway junction is of particular importance. First, I-795 terminates at the Beltway and dumps drivers into the area. Secondly, Reisterstown Road swiftly transitions into the notorious ghettos of West Baltimore en route to downtown.

County residents will pay up for said access to the Beltway and to avert the prospects of stopping to fill up at the bullet riddled West Side. Hence, gas prices flash the expensive $2.53 at this Beltway interchange in Pikesville.

Baltimore County commuters into Northwest Baltimore must avail themselves to two separate locations for affordable gas. Prices plunge at Northern Parkway in the City and MD 26 / Liberty Road east of the Beltway in the County. These two pockets do represent zones that are relatively safe from Baltimore inner city violence.

Exxon operates at the corner of Northern Parkway and Reisterstown Road and sells regular unleaded fuel for $2.37.

Beyond Northwest, the Jones Falls Expressway is a disaster for buying gas. The Jones Falls Valley represents the East Coast Fall Line and generally demarcates the hilly Appalachian piedmont from the Atlantic Coastal Plain.

The diverse topography is rarely spanned in Baltimore and effectively drives a wedge between East and West Baltimore. In fact, truckers are directed to exit at North Avenue for the only viable cross-town route across the Falls.

Gas prices always spike at the JFX. The price action arrives despite the fact that 83 barrels through some of Baltimore's most depressed sections. Currently, the going rate for regular fuel signals $2.65 at the expressway.

Exxon and Shell both match the $2.65 mark at Northern Parkway and Falls Road. This location does mark the gateway between the Falls and Baltimore's Old Money Roland Avenue.

The high priced equation continues towards the Inner Harbor at the Cold Spring Lane, U.S. 1 / North Avenue, St. Paul Street exits. The North Avenue zone is particularly interesting, considering the fact that this corridor always represents an open-air battleground for Baltimore City gangs to defend street turf.

Gas retails for $2.63 at St. Paul Street and the Howard Street alignment at the Falls.

Baltimore City commuters will discover that prices fall to $2.45 at Greenmount Avenue / York Road. Of course, County residents may balk at the prospects of shifting east towards Greenmount and deeper into City mayhem.

Despairingly, urban decay is a staple of Baltimore, Maryland.

Where to Buy Cheap Gas in Baltimore

Cheap gas is for sale in Northeast at U.S. 1 / Belair Road towards the County.

The Baltimore landscape shifts from the battered East Side blight into the used car sales lots, sprawl, and working class enclaves of Baltimore. Prices remain within a tight $2.35 - $2.40 band at Belair Road.

We must highlight the stretch of Belair between Hamilton and Northern Parkway as the most viable cluster of cheap gas options in Baltimore. Exxon, Texaco, and several independent gasoline wholesalers operate along this major thoroughfare and aggressively compete to undercut the next shop.

Big Oil stalwart Exxon is pumping cheap gas for $2.39 at 6109 Belair Road.

Marylanders and East Coast travelers heading north will exit I-95 at Moravia Road and trace this surface street to Belair. Motorists will turn right at Belair to buy cheap gas. Commuters will continue north along U.S. 1 to reclaim 95 via the I-695 / Beltway East exit to Essex. (Southbound drivers will do the opposite and exit at 695 "Towson" for Route 1 / Belair Road. There is no exit onto Moravia from 95 South.)

Baltimore drivers must recognize that this Belair Road lineup of cheap gas is interrupted at Overlea and the Beltway. Prices will ramp up dramatically towards $2.50 and $2.60 into White Marsh and Baltimore County.

Happy Trails.

Where to Buy Cheap Gas in Baltimore, Maryland, Sources:

Kofi Bofah, Where to Buy Cheap Gas in Washington, D.C., http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1867159/where_to_buy_cheap_gas_in_washington.html?cat=27

Baltimore, http://baltimore.org/

The Official Web Site for the State of Maryland, http://www.maryland.gov/Pages/default.aspx

Baltimore Gas Prices, http://www.baltimoregasprices.com/