When it comes to gasoline retailing and what brand names mean to consumers, some of us may say we're loyal to a particular brand for one reason or another, while others say "Whoever's got the lowest price is the one that gets my business!"

Certainly all of those retailers want to make the right impression to gain your business and your trust, but some are making a better impression than others.

According to the National Association of Convenience Stores, as Americans speed through their busy days, many shop at convenience stores with some that are stand-alone and many that are retail gas stations. In the inaugural year for the "Convenience Store Brand of the Year", Speedway takes the top spot, followed by Arco am/pm and 7-Eleven.

The Energy Information Administration released its weekly report on the condition of petroleum inventories in the United States today.

Here are some highlights:

CRUDE INVENTORIES:
Crude oil inventories increased by 2.1 million barrels to a total of 381.6 million barrels. At 381.6 million barrels, inventories are 11.3 million barrels above last year (3.1%) and are above the upper limit of the average range.

GASOLINE INVENTORIES:
Gasoline inventories decreased by 2.8 million barrels to 204.3 million barrels. At 204.3 million barrels, inventories are down 1.6 million barrels, or 0.8% lower than last year. Here's how individual regions and their gasoline inventory fared last week: East Coast (N/C); Midwest (-1.3mb); Gulf Coast (-0.5mb); Rockies (-0.2mb); and West Coast (-0.8mb). It is important to note which regions saw increases/decreases as this information likely drives prices up (in the case of falling inventories), or down (in the case of rising inventories).

DISTILLATE (diesel, heating oil) INVENTORIES:
Distillate inventories decreased by 1.0 million barrels to a total of 119.8 million barrels. At 119.8 million barrels, inventories are now 23.3% lower than a year ago. Total distillate inventories stand 16.3 million barrels lower than their year ago level.

Hold on to your hats, West Coasters. There may be some good news ahead: gasoline prices that have risen sharply may suddenly give way. Initial reports indicate that supply is building in the region (we'll get more details tomorrow morning), but with refineries margins on the rise as gas prices rise, you can bet they're trying hard to get back online and soak up the improved margins.

How long will it take? Even though wholesale prices took a pretty big hit today, it won't be overnight, and it might take more than a week or two. I do expect that by Memorial Day, if the situation holds steady and doesn't get any worse that we're on a track to have average prices falling in Washington, Oregon, and California by then.

Again- things are looking much more positive than they were late last week and early this week, but much of the continued drops in spot or wholesale prices will depend on a confirmation from the Energy Information Administration tomorrow in its weekly report. if the report confirms supply is rising, look for even better news than what I'm telling you now. If indications are wrong, prices may continue to rise, but at a slower pace than what you've seen in the last week.

Until recently, this feature was something that hadn't received much attention but Nissan has developed a way to help motorists maintain optimum tire pressure and it comes standard in all 2013 Nissan models.

It's Nissan's "Easy Fill Tire Alert" system that eliminates the guesswork as well as the significant margin of error that exists between one tire pressure gauge and another. With this system, when your tire pressure goes low it alerts you to the specific tire and gives you an exact reading on the current tire pressure that tire has instead of simply lighting up a bulb in the dashboard. So there's no need to guess where the problem is and you don't even need a tire gauge.

As you fill the tire the car's four-way flashers come on to confirm that the air is going in and the horn chirps when you've reached the required pressure for your vehicle, says James Healey, of USA TODAY, who calls it "the best automotive idea since brakes."

How many times have you driven on the interstate --crawling at less than half the speed you should be traveling-- only to see an electronic message board that informs you of what's painfully obvious; that motorists may 'encounter delays'?

Minnesota's Dept. of Transportation has a solution and they've implemented a more proactive system to deliver timely, targeted construction news. To date, more than 16,000 Minnesotans have signed up for MnDOT's email updates, a service that sends out information about major construction projects around the state, both current and future projects. They share video links too so motorists can see what's planned in months ahead.

Individuals can sign up for updates on roads they regularly travel; I-35, Highway 169; Highway 61/Hastings Bridge and more and get the latest reports on construction for their area.

We mentioned it was coming a few days ago. Hundreds of you shared the story that we wrote, "West Coast Motorists: Prepare to get clobbered", and clobbered is what you're getting. In an update to that story, so far in the last week, prices have risen sharply. If you're not on the West Coast, skip down to the last paragraph to see what we expect outside this region.

Prices across California are seeing an average increase of 14-cents per gallon in the last week alone, with some cities seeing much bigger increases. Here are some of the increases compared to last Monday:
Santa Barbara, up 17c/gal
San Jose, up 14c/gal
San Fran, up 12c/gal
San Diego, up 13c/gal
Sacramento, up 13c/gal
Orange County, up 17c/gal
Oakland, up 15c/gal
Los Angeles, up 15c/gal

The Prime Minister's Office tried to cut funding of a registered intervenor in the Enbridge Pipeline Review, calling ForestEthics Canada an, "Enemy of the Government of Canada" and an, "Enemy of the People of Canada", according to a press release by whistleblower Andrew Frank, former Senior Communications Manager with ForestEthics Canada.

How far will the Canadian government go to silence its own citizens, worried about what a massive new pipeline that runs through the country? Apparently, pretty far.

According to the press release, an affidavit alleges the Prime Minister's Office has made an attempt to influence the charitable funding of ForestEthics Canada, a registered intervenor in the National Energy Board's federal review process for the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline.

According to the affidavit, the Prime Minister's Office has informed Tides Canada CEO, Ross McMillan, that it considers ForestEthics to be an "Enemy of the Government of Canada", and an "Enemy of the people of Canada", and that unless Tides Canada alters its charitable support of ForestEthics, there will be consequences.

Want to see what a $7.4 million gas station looks like? Now's your chance. You'll find it at Buc-ee's Travel Center, the world's largest convenience store at I-35 and Exit 191 (Farm-to-Market Road 306) in New Braunfels, Texas.

The folks running Buc-ee's, a 26-store chain based in Texas, have found a unique formula for success. They opened their new landmark this week in New Braunfels, at what is sure to become a convenience store-tourist attraction. It's a 68,000 square-foot consumer magnet that makes it fun to stop there. (By the time you get back in your car you'll probably have purchased so many things that the gasoline you buy will just seem incidental.)

Buc-ee's has 60 fuel pumps outside and artwork available for sale inside. They also sell fudge, deer feeders, beachwear and t-shirts featuring the chain's trademark logo of a buck-toothed beaver. They've got monogrammed Texas Longhorn and Aggies sportswear.

Motorists- beware. A U.S. Senate transportation bill (S. 1813) is currently being negotiated in the U.S. House and Senate, and the Senate recently inserted a provision in the bill that would mandate the use of black boxes in all vehicles starting with the 2015 model year.

While this may not mean much for some motorists, it's a sign of what's coming: more government insight into how you drive your vehicle. According to The Newspaper, "Under text of S. 1813, also known as MAP-21, the information stored on an event data recorder could be retrieved under a court order "in the furtherance of a legal proceeding," by employees of the Department of Transportation in the event of an accident, and by anyone "for the purpose of determining the need for, or facilitating, emergency medical response." Two years after enactment, transportation officials would initiate a rulemaking to expand the amount of data collected and require "an interoperable data access port to facilitate universal accessibility and analysis."

Since the average bridge in the U.S. was only built to last about 50 years it's no surprise to learn that from coast to coast we have thousands of "structurally deficient" bridges that need some attention. But which ones will be repaired and which will be ignored?

In reading government "assessments" it's important to know that "structurally deficient" does not necessarily mean they're "crumbling" or "unsafe," according to Transportation For America, a national coalition dedicated purely to improving transportation infrastructure and securing federal funding.

"It’s worth clarifying that structurally deficient bridges aren’t necessarily below any type of safety code. Yes, the I-35W Minneapolis bridge was rated structurally deficient when it collapsed, but state DOTs will tell you that they close bridges that are unsafe. Some but not all deficient bridges urgently require replacement or repair. Neglecting repairs to these bridges now will cost us millions more down the road and increase the chance that they have to be closed or limited to traffic one day, also costing money in lost time and productivity," says the organization's director, James Corless.

More importantly, Corless makes the point that some states may be more successful than others in securing federal funding if their representatives know how to build the case for federal dollars based on local needs.

In my post Monday, I highlighted that gasoline prices would be falling nationally with the exception of the West Coast. I can't highlight this enough for those who may not have read it, and want to hold me personally responsible later for my forecast, so here it is again. Prepare to get clobbered.

Motorists in California should take note the most. We're also likely to see collateral damage in Oregon, Washington, perhaps even Nevada and Arizona, but to a lesser extent in those last two, respectively.

Prices in these areas could shoot up dramatically in the next few days or week, in the worst areas it could have risen 25-40 cents per gallon since the start of May by the time the increases are over. California could see the highest prices of the year occur in this mid-May stretch. I certainly don't think there's a reason to panic about this. There will still be gasoline. This warning is to prepare yourself, or make plans, knowing that gasoline prices may jump a good amount soon.

Crude oil prices have fallen by $10 per barrel in the last 10 days. Why? Most people who follow oil and gasoline prices agree that several reasons explain it: a rising dollar pushes commodities lower; weak employment numbers from the U.S. Dept. of Labor reflect slow economic recovery --little change in consumer demand-- while tensions have eased between Iran and Western nations over the country’s nuclear program.

However, it may be premature to say that those tensions will remain muted. Last week Israel Defense Minister Ehud Barak made a speech to the Foreign Press Association in Jerusalem where he said the following:

"Iranian deception and lies concerning their nuclear program have been on-going and well-documented. Yet parts of the world, including some politically motivated Israeli figures, prefer to bury their heads in sand."

Nevada has issued Google the first license from its Dept. of Motor Vehicles to permit testing driverless vehicles on streets and highways. It's beleived to be the first such license issued anywhere in the U.S.

Nevada's 2011 legislature passed the first law in the nation to permit testing driverless cars, but state regulations do require a human being to be behind the wheel and another in the passenger's seat during tests.

According to DMV spokesman Tom Jacobs, "It's a work in progress. The system regulates the brakes, acceleeration and steering."

The Las Vegas Sun says Google has equipped a fleet of eight test vehicles -- six Toyota Priuses, an Audi TT and a Lexus RX450h. DMV officials have been in the vehicles during demonstrations on the Las Vegas Strip and in Carson City. There have been other demonstrations of the driverless technology on the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and around Lake Tahoe.

Nevada's DMV says that license plates issued for driverless cars will have a red background and feature an infinity symbol on the left side that is intended to represent 'the car of the future'.

Google says the system allows a human driver to take control by stepping on the brake or turning the wheel. It hopes to market the technology to auto manufacturers. It combines artificial intelligence software, a global positioning system and an array of sensors to navigate its way through traffic.

And apparently, Google already has plenty of competition lining up too that want to test and develop their own autonomous technology, Jacobs says.

So if you're in Nevada and you notice that the driver in the car next to you isn't paying any attention to the road in front of him --maybe he's preoccupied-- check for the red background in his license plate and you'll be able to relax knowing that there's no human driving at all!

The Energy Information Administration released its weekly report on the condition of petroleum inventories in the United States today.

Here are some highlights:

CRUDE INVENTORIES:
Crude oil inventories increased by 3.7 million barrels to a total of 379.5 million barrels. At 379.5 million barrels, inventories are 9.2 million barrels above last year (2.5%) and are above the upper limit of the average range.

GASOLINE INVENTORIES:
Gasoline inventories decreased by 2.6 million barrels to 207.1 million barrels. At 207.1 million barrels, inventories are up 1.3 million barrels, or 0.6% higher than last year. Here's how individual regions and their gasoline inventory fared last week: East Coast (+0.2mb); Midwest (-0.2mb); Gulf Coast (-0.3mb); Rockies (-0.2mb); and West Coast (-2.2mb). It is important to note which regions saw increases/decreases as this information likely drives prices up (in the case of falling inventories), or down (in the case of rising inventories).

DISTILLATE (diesel, heating oil) INVENTORIES:
Distillate inventories decreased by 3.3 million barrels to a total of 120.8 million barrels. At 120.8 million barrels, inventories are now 16.3% lower than a year ago. Total distillate inventories stand 23.5 million barrels lower than their year ago level.

Can you imagine the day where a city decides to give its parking meters to an outside for-profit company? Well one U.S. city did that, and not only are the motorists there paying huge increases in parking rates, but the city itself will likely end up paying the entire amount that was given to them for the meters back to the company now operating and profiting off them.

That's right- more corruption in the Windy City, and you can be sure that as governments sell off their assets this could happen more and more! The Windy City already sold a toll-road bridge to a private entity and guess what happened to the toll rate? It jumped. It's now nearly double what it was just years ago.

So imagine this- Chicago sold its parking meters back in 2008 to a private for-profit company for $1.16 billion dollars for ownership of all the city meters for 75-years. Now the city is paying the company $14 million just this year in lost revenue because of street closings, festivals, construction, and other work. The number the city has paid out has increased every year, and it's not likely to drop with Chicago spending billions on its aging infrastructure, resulting in road closures, and lost meter money.