Trying To Steer Clear Of "Breaking Point"
This story appeared on The Early Show
It's the same story here in Denver that I've encountered across the country: Everybody's feeling the pinch of increasing gas prices, and it's changing how they spend their money.
Larry Clark delivers sandwiches to make a living -- but it's not much of a living these days. He's getting squeezed by the high price of gas on one hand, and low tips on the other. Customers already struggling to pay the bills aren't leaving him much. His tips are down 30 percent.
We went with him and saw exactly what he's talking about.
First stop: Nothing extra.
"She said, 'Thank you,' " Clark says. "Thank-yous are nice, but they don't help us buy our gas."
Some aren't even giving customers the option.
Flower shop owner Allen Bemel's delivery surcharge is up between 30 and 50 percent, depending on distance. He says, "We have to pass that cost on to the consumer."
From delivery drivers, to limo drivers, the record rise in gas prices is forcing everyone to adjust.
Kerrin Kerrick runs a car service in Denver, and she told me, "We are passing some of the prices on, we are absorbing some of the loss, and we are looking for better vehicles."
They're now phasing in "flex" vehicles, which run partially on ethanol, the fuel made from corn, which costs only two bucks a gallon.
But, like many business owners, she's wondering where the breaking point is.
"We' hope we can find other options, so we don't have a breaking point," Kerrick says.
© 2008 CBS Interactive Inc.. All Rights Reserved. It's the same story here in Denver that I've encountered across the country: Everybody's feeling the pinch of increasing gas prices, and it's changing how they spend their money.
Larry Clark delivers sandwiches to make a living -- but it's not much of a living these days. He's getting squeezed by the high price of gas on one hand, and low tips on the other. Customers already struggling to pay the bills aren't leaving him much. His tips are down 30 percent.
We went with him and saw exactly what he's talking about.
First stop: Nothing extra.
"She said, 'Thank you,' " Clark says. "Thank-yous are nice, but they don't help us buy our gas."
Some aren't even giving customers the option.
Flower shop owner Allen Bemel's delivery surcharge is up between 30 and 50 percent, depending on distance. He says, "We have to pass that cost on to the consumer."
From delivery drivers, to limo drivers, the record rise in gas prices is forcing everyone to adjust.
Kerrin Kerrick runs a car service in Denver, and she told me, "We are passing some of the prices on, we are absorbing some of the loss, and we are looking for better vehicles."
They're now phasing in "flex" vehicles, which run partially on ethanol, the fuel made from corn, which costs only two bucks a gallon.
But, like many business owners, she's wondering where the breaking point is.
"We' hope we can find other options, so we don't have a breaking point," Kerrick says.
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And why haven''t they been re-introduced ?
And why haven''t they been re-introduced ?
And why havn''t they been re-introduced ?
And why havn''t they been re-introduced ?