Drivers flock to gas stations as provisional tax rate expires
With the expiry of the provisional gasoline tax rate at midnight Monday, people flocked to gas stations to buy cheaper gasoline across the country Tuesday.
In Edogawa Ward, Tokyo, which is known for its high concentration of gas stations, Ichigo-hausu SS reduced its price of a liter of gasoline by 20 yen–1 yen more than it had originally planned–after the station’s manager checked the prices of other gas stations in the neighborhood.
After the gas station opened at 7 a.m., the manager said, “We’ve had about three times more customers than we do on ordinary weekdays.”
A 42-year-old woman who went there to fill up her car said: “I held off putting gas in our family’s car until today. [The discount] really helps out our family budget.”
Yoshida Shoji’s Kodaira SS in Kodaira, Tokyo, also reduced its gasoline price by 22 yen to 126 yen per liter. Immediately after a sign advertising the discounted price was put up, all six pumps were occupied. Several cars waited to refuel on the road in front of the gas station.
A 69-year-old man of Kodaira who filled up his car said, “Because I live on pension, the 20 yen discount means a lot to me.”
With many people seeking cheaper gasoline, some gas stations were worried about how long their gasoline stocks would last.
Tokai Oil Inc.’s Nagoya-nishi SS in Nakagawa Ward, Nagoya, discounted its gasoline price by 25 yen from midnight Monday. The gas station reported an increase of 10 percent to 20 percent in the number of customers from early Tuesday morning.
A 37-year-old manager of the gas station said, “We’re worried about whether the gasoline stocks will run out because we’re not sure when the next tanker truck will arrive to refill our tanks.”
A gas station in Fukuoka discounted its gas price from 149 yen to 129 yen, but it did not put up signs advertising the discounted price. “We don’t want to cause regular customers trouble. If many people flock to our gas station, we might sell out of gasoline,” an employee of the gas station said.
A gas station in Kita Ward, Sapporo, urged its customers to refrain from filling up their cars with high-octane gasoline, whose price was reduced by about 20 yen, at about 8 a.m. because the gas station was running out of the fuel.
Source: The Yomiuri Shimbun
Tags: discounts, fuel price, Japan, tax rates