Midwest Drivers Filling Up  Painfully Wednesday, June 28, 2000 Drivers in the Midwest say they're battling soaring gas prices by carpooling, trimming back summer travel plans and filling their tanks with cheaper fuel in neighboring states.

Elijah Cunigan has changed his mind about driving 90 miles from Detroit to Lansing, Mich. this weekend to see his sister  or going anywhere else this summer  because he can't afford to fill up his Mercury Villager minivan.

"They're all canceled," he said. "If the prices were like they were last summer, I could do more."

A year ago, the average price for a gallon of regular-grade gas in Michigan was $1.15. This year it's $1.97, according to the American Automobile Association.

But as the Fourth of July holiday draws near, some relief is in sight. For instance, Indiana Gov. Frank O'Bannon has suspended the state sales tax on gasoline for 60 days. The Illinois Legislature will meet in special session beginning Wednesday to discuss repealing or suspending the state's 5 percent sales tax on fuel.

Energy Secretary Bill Richardson said Tuesday that "unacceptably high" gas prices are falling 7 to 12 cents per gallon in the Midwest. He also said Energy Department figures showed gas prices nationwide dropped 3 cents a gallon over the last week.

BP Amoco, the largest supplier of gas in the Chicago area, announced last week it was lowering prices, which officials attributed to an increase in oil supply.

Meanwhile, a spokeswoman with AAA says an association poll shows higher gas prices are having little overall affect on travel plans.

In fact, 32 million people will drive at least 100 miles from home over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, according to the AAA poll. That's up 4 percent from last year.

AAA spokeswoman Janie Graziani said gas is still just a small fraction of travel expenses compared to meals, lodging and entertainment. She said nearly 5 million holiday travelers hail from Midwest states where gas tops $2 dollars a gallon in many places.

The association claims nearly 5 million of all holiday weekend travelers to be from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin, even though gas prices are as much as 90 cents more per gallon in some places compared to last year.

Some drivers say they are trying to save by carpooling or, in the case of some Chicagoans, by driving to neighboring Indiana to fill up. Gas is about 20-cents-a-gallon cheaper across the state border.

The Energy Department says there has been some relief. Pump prices nationally have dropped three cents a gallon over the past week.

Jerry Pagel of Wausau, Wis., refuses to cancel his weekend trips to his parents' cottage on Lake Nokomis, about 40 miles away.

"Nothing would make me change those plans, even if they put it at $4 a gallon," Pagel said as he pumped $25 worth of unleaded regular at $1.83 per gallon into his minivan.

AAA's Graziani was not surprised that most people feel the way Pagel does. It still costs less for a family to drive than buy airplane tickets, which include a fuel surcharge of up to $30 per round-trip ticket.

The AAA survey of 1,300 adults was taken in April, before gas prices hit the $2-per-gallon mark in some areas, but Graziani said it included questions about travel plans if prices continued to rise. Only 1 percent said they would cancel their trips.

M. Spencer Green/AP Jerry Marcoccia, who doesn't own a car, waits for his trian after work last Friday in Chicago. He's part of a relatively small group who live and work in Chicago while watching the gas-price crisis from the sidelines

The AAA projects 37.5 million people will travel 100 miles or more from home between Friday and Tuesday  the Fourth of July weekend. Of those, 32 million are expected to travel by car, a 4 percent increase over last year, Graziani said.

Cicero Miller was pleased to get even a small break as he fueled up his Jeep Cherokee sport utility vehicle at an Amoco station on Chicago's southwest side, where the lowest grade gas was $2 per gallon. He said it now costs him about $40 to fill up his tank, compared with about $25 a year ago.

"I'm retired and on a fixed income, so it's taking a bite," he said.

He's been saving a little by driving 10 miles or so to the Indiana state line to get cheaper fuel.

LeFlore, Miller and other motorists said they have heard many explanations for the rise in prices. Industry officials have cited rising crude oil prices, low gasoline stocks, pipeline problems and cleaner-burning, more-expensive reformulated gas required in Chicago, Milwaukee and other cities with severe summer smog problems.

Like Miller, Patricia Carroll has been going to Indiana to fill up her Saab. She plans outings there like berry picking or trips to the beach with her 7-year-old daughter to make up for the inconvenience of driving to another state for gas.

"I have family and friends around the country and nobody is paying this much," Carroll said.

Experts expect gas prices to drop once the summer travel season ends. Even though he is spending $10 to $20 more per week for gas, Dan Dreyer of Indianapolis hopes drivers will have learned that they are not entitled to cheap gas.

"Regardless of what anyone says, it's not an infinite resource," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), June 28, 2000