Where to Buy Cheap Gas in St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis and Missouri drivers at-large do benefit from gas prices that are indeed cheap relative to the National averages. As of July 13, 2009, the U.S. Department of Energy is calculating a nationwide $2.528 average for regular grade gasoline. Today, St. Louis prices register $2.292, which undercuts the U.S. barometer by 24 cents.

Gas prices are largely a function of crude oil costs and taxes. Certainly, state tax legislation and one's geographic proximity to critical Gulf Coast oil fields and refining capacity generates the interstate price disparity across America.

Locally, particular gas price levels are targeted concerning ideal access to economically vibrant commercial or residential enclaves and the heavily trafficked roadways of the area.

The "wealth effect" of setting up shop and serving clientele within an exclusive zone arrives with a premium, as increased property costs must be passed onto the consumer at the pump.

St. Louis area drivers must learn to play the angles for cheap gas.

St. Louis juxtaposes two municipalities that occupy two extreme branches of the gas tax continuum. Illinois motorists are slapped with a 6.25% sales tax in addition to an already egregious 32.4-cent per gallon gas duty. Meanwhile, Missouri drivers are asked to pony up a 17.3-cent pittance upon retail gas purchases at the register.

According to the American Petroleum Institute, Illinois drivers are terrorized by the fifth highest gas taxes in the country, while the Show Me State blesses motorists with rates that are the seventh lowest in the U.S.

Still, cheap gas prevails at St. Louis and saving gasoline money remains more so a function of avoiding particular areas, than proactively targeting pockets of affordable fuel. Certainly, $3 per gallon Chicagoans would rail against Downstate and St. Louis consumers crying Uncle over $2.30 gas.

Our cheap gas proposal begins by exposing those expensive locales that are to be avoided at all costs. We shall then close with a viable outline for securing cheap gas. The goal is to combine location with price to create real value.

We do recognize that rates shift dramatically from day to day. However, particular patterns will hold steady over time and the term "cheap gas" is really a function of "less expensive than the next guy." Our price quotes will adjust over time to prevailing economic conditions, but the "expensive / cheap" interplay amidst the different service stations will remain going forward.

Where NOT to Buy Gas in St. Louis

Do not buy gas in Illinois (Metro - East), unless you are running on fumes.

Land of Lincoln gas prices are ridiculous, due in large part to the excessive gas tax legislation at Springfield. East St. Louis, IL represents the most glaring victim of said policy.

E. St. Louis features some of the highest prices within Greater St. Louis, despite the fact that the ravaged city is a poster child for poverty, urban blight, and industrial Midwest ruin. BP is hawking gas for $2.49 at 306 Riverpark Drive in East St. Louis.

$2.49 marks today's going rate for East St. Louis gas. This figure is a total joke, considering the fact that prices plunge by 20 cents across the I-55 / 64 / 70 Poplar Street Bridge into downtown St. Louis.

The very same British Petroleum organization is peddling 87-octane for $2.29 at Broadway and Lombard over the Mississippi.

Interestingly, East St. Louis prices are actually lower than the $2.55 recording at the Kings Highway Mobil in Washington Park.

Metro - East residents would all be better served spanning the Great River to buy gas in Missouri for cheap gas. Alton, Wood River, Granite City, and East St. Louis all represent convenient entry points for IL / MO bridge traffic and spreads range from 10 - 30 cents per gallon between the two neighboring states.

St. Louis area residents commuting back and forth between Illinois and Missouri must never buy gas at the Land of Lincoln.

Per the Missouri side of the river, gas prices routinely spike at all expressway entrances into downtown.

$2.29 is the upper limit for St. Louis, Missouri gas and various service stations flash this reading at the City entrances to I-44, 55, 64, and 70 towards the Gateway Arch.

St. Louis drivers must stray from the beaten path to buy gas that is even cheaper.

Where to Buy Cheap Gas in St. Louis

Midtown St. Louis is a pocket of cheap gas tucked away from the fray of the St. Louis expressway network. Delmar Boulevard, Jefferson, and Vandeventer Avenue highlight the area and feature affordable gasoline.

ZX is posted up at 1310 N. Grand Boulevard and Mobil operates just to the east at Delmar and Jefferson to peddle $2.24 per 87-octane gallon.

Both locations are ideal for St. Louis veterans that will exit 70, 64, or, 44 onto Grand Boulevard to enter the Midtown neighborhood.

BP is also hawking cheap $2.19 gas at the St. Louis - Pine Lawn border at 4207 Jennings Station Road, directly off I-70.

St. Louis consumers will acknowledge the fact that prices typically fall within one tight $2.20 - $2.25 band at the Lou, with few isolated exceptions. For example, the Airport BP in Edmundson is the lone station retailing $2.39 gas amidst a sea of $2.24 offerings at St. Charles Rock Road and the neighboring I-170 / Inner Belt junctions.

I would not recommend that Missouri commuters high tail across town to save 5 cents per gallon.

Again, buying affordable gas in St. Louis is more so a function of avoiding particularly expensive locales and combining location with price to create value.

Happy Trails.

Where to Buy Cheap Gas in St. Louis, Sources:

The City of St. Louis, Missouri, http://stlouis.missouri.org/

The State of Illinois, http://www.illinois.gov/

St. Louis Gas Prices, http://www.stlouisgasprices.com/