Short term gas shortage in Nashville area

[El Toro]

If you're traveling through Middle Tennessee and you are thinking about a gas stop, make the stop before you get within about 35 miles of Nashville from any direction.

For the last 24 hours there has been panic buying in and around Nashville caused by fears of a short supply due to the repairs being done on the Colonial Pipeline south of Birmingham, Alabama.

As of tonight, many stations in the greater Nashville area (say +/-25 miles from downtown Nashville) are out of gas.

Deliveries continue and rules have been relaxed so that tanker truck drivers can work longer than normally authorized hours, but people are topping off their tanks whenever they find gas. When a delivery is made, what would normally take several days to sell is gone in less than one shift.

If you get outside of the greater Nashville area, there's far less of a problem. You may run into a stations that are out of a grade, but as of this evening, everybody seems to still have gas available.

 

[SmashVol]

Yeah they have lost their mind down here about the gas. People here a mention of a possible, maybe, possible, sort of problem with gas and they go a Panic buying spree. A couple of gas stations down the road from me went up almost 50 cents a gallon overnight so they are taking the opportunity to gouge people also.

 

[rbentnail]

It seems the same here in middle NC. The ten or so gas stations in the town I'm in are out. Away from town it's better.

 

[Punkinhead]

I'm heading to the Eastern TN, Western NC, North GA area for a week of riding starting tomorrow (staying in Tellico Plains). Am I going to run into any problems finding gas out in the sticks?

 

[NTXFJR]

Thanks for the update El Toro. The wife and I are in Nashville now visiting my daughter and son in law since Friday. All the pumps at least in the area we are staying near the universities are sold out and we wondered what was going on. Then we heard about the pipeline thing yesterday, so I figured it was a panicked college kid thing. We are leaving Nashville this morning heading for home, so hearing that there is gas outside the area is welcome news.

 

[griff]

Yeah, one of the Asheville TV stations told folks last night to go out and fill up. Just what you don't want to happen.

 

[ionbeam]

This is actually a regional issue. Because it effects EOM the details are posted in that thread. Read the details >>here<<..

 

[El Toro]

The pipeline supposedly provides something like a million barrels a (insert time here, I think they said "day"). It runs from down in the Gulf area up to NYC, so it is a big factor in East Coast supply.

We're conserving here.

They say that the repairs on the pipeline should be completed within this coming week. Once gas is flowing again, there may still be shortages until people stop pulling in and topping off their tanks every time they see pumps with gas available.

In Tennessee if you think the seller is price gouging there is a phone number you can call to report them, but price gouging is in the eye of the beholder. There is no specific standard for enforcement. Besides, most people would pay whatever the gas costs and be happy to get it.

We hope things settle down by next weekend. There should be plenty of supply for normal buying levels by then.

 

[Bill Lumberg]

I used to live there. We had a gas shortage based on nothing but rumor a few years back. Rumor got started, we laughed about it, and within 36 hours, so many folks had topped off, filled gas cans, and similar stuff, that they'd run the stations dry. This one isn't isolated to Nashville, as others have noted. Cities in other areas, such as Buford, GA are seeing shortages and closed stations. A result of the gas line break reports.... I knew we were in for it when they put it on the Weather Channel crawler.... Usually, once you get away from a city center, things get better. My wife traveled to Nashville to see family for the weekend. Before she went, I had to make sure I had sufficient fuel on hand to fuel my truck there and back, and sufficient fuel to ensure her vehicle could get back. Sort of a in-flight refueling. Based on past experience, we figured as long as she went into Nashville with the tank 3/4 full, she could get far enough away to get fuel to get back home in Georgia.

I was kind of preoccupied with this yesterday. We had folks from other towns nearby coming to my rather rural area to get gas. By the end of the day, Kroger was dry, while the smaller stations were merely showing increased fueling traffic.

 

[rbentnail]

Yeah, one of the Asheville TV stations told folks last night to go out and fill up. Just what you don't want to happen.

I'm surprised there's still milk, bread and toilet paper on the shelves. You know, "just in case."

And I notice the lack of fuel hasn't kept anyone home this morning. Normally Sunday morn is peace & quiet on my road but not today- traffic from hell. WTF?

 

[Bill Lumberg]

At the intersection nearest the house, two of the three stations are dry. The remaining has a line. It'll be interesting.

 

[El Toro]

People are literally stopping every time they see that a station has gas and their topping off, sometimes buying a gallon before their tank is full.

It is incredibly inconsiderate, and it explains why rationing is the approach that was used in WWII. You cannot trust people not to hoard. It is human nature.

One of the stations in Smyrna (a small town between Nashville and Murfreesboro off I-24) was charging $4.99 for premium yesterday before they ran out. Now the management is being interviewed by all the TV stations. It is a fellow of foreign origin who insists that he does not know what price gouging is, and that he wasn't price gouging when he was selling the gas at those prices.

There is no gas from Nashville to Murfreesboro according to my kids who live in "the Boro."

Hope the craziness moderates soon. We all laughed it off based on the prediction that the major consequence would be a $.15/gal price hike.

That has not been the major consequence. The major consequence has been a run on the pumps, with those acting the most greedy, getting the most gas, and those who take the approach requested by the government getting screwed over. I may have to siphon gas out of the lawnmower (It's got about 11 gallons of no ethanol) and taking it to the kids using the Prius and it's 54 mpg performance, so that they can get to work. I hope I don't have to do this because it is a gas wasting activity, even in the Prius.

Sigh....

 

[SunRider]

I'm heading to the Eastern TN, Western NC, North GA area for a week of riding starting tomorrow (staying in Tellico Plains). Am I going to run into any problems finding gas out in the sticks?

Punkin-

As of yesterday, we saw lines, closed pumps, and prices boosted by 30 cents in and near Blairsville GA. However, all appeared fairly normal in Blue Ridge GA, with perhaps increased business at the Exxon at 515/60 and the Raceway further west.

 

[Wlfman]

I got gas here in Lebanon TN (20-30 miles East of Nashville) with no problem. Price was hiked up to 2.19 at Shell.

 

[rbentnail]

Rode north into Virginia today, Danville and east to South Boston. Every station had fuel, no lines, no price hikes, etc. Business as usual. Once I crossed back into NC not a drop of fuel was to be found.

 

[Bungie]

Yeah, one of the Asheville TV stations told folks last night to go out and fill up. Just what you don't want to happen.

Now arent you glad you retired from that mess

 

[1911]

rules have been relaxed so that tanker truck drivers can work longer than normally authorized hours

DOT max is normally 14 hrs/day. I wonder how much rule relaxing we're talking about? Gasoline tankers driven by drivers that have been behind the wheel for 18 hrs

I parked the camper Friday after noon in N Ga, with no access to cell phone, internet or tv. Imagine the WTF factor when I rolled back out into the real world Sunday afternoon.

 

[Fred W]

The entire "shortage" is being caused by the irresponsible media hype stirring the sheeple into a gasoline hoarding frenzy. The reported closed stations and massive lines are primarily in heavy population areas (Atlanta, Nashville, Memphis) where people are apparently more easily frenzied.

The company that owns the broken pipeline had second one in parallel that is still running at its full capacity, and they switched another parallel diesel line over to carry gasoline, so their capacity is pretty much what it was before the rupture. If there were any actual shortage right now it should be in diesel.

Quick way to stop the hoarders would be to raise the price to $6 a gallon.

 

[Bungie]

I've been watching and googling this issue. I'm hauling the bike down with Line. I don't want to pay Cdn prices the whole way down

Looks like it shouldn't be to much of an issue. I told Line I'd make a go-no go decision today. Looks like go right now.