Driving is extremely important and a necessity for many families and students. Students need to get to school, go to work and go out with friends. That is a huge part of our teenage years, but one thing is preventing that: tariffs. Due to the war in Iran, many people can’t afford gas. Many students are canceling plans because they can’t afford to go out as much.

“The gas prices are affecting me because I am on probably 50 miles right now. I haven’t filled up my tank in about three weeks, and I have premium gas because my car is a hybrid, which means that it’s $4 instead of $3, so let’s just say that I haven’t bought anything from the store in about two months,” junior Leah Cheek said.

“Gas prices have been really messing up my spending due to the increase in prices, and it really has caused me to drive less because I’m scared of the prices. And scared of the price it cost to fill up my whole tank,” junior Jace Bowman said.

“Gas price inflation is not affecting me because it’s only a few dollars difference, and it doesn’t matter, and I also have a job so I have money to pay for my gas,” junior Abby Foster said.

“I used to be able to fill up, basically, my whole entire tank with $30, and now it takes like, 50 to 60 dollars to fill up my whole entire tank, so I can’t buy whatever I want anymore,” senior Sierra Hickman said.

“The gas prices are going up, so it really does affect me. I drive a Prius, so I only pay like $25, but now it went up to like $35. So it’s getting more expensive, but it’s not affecting my money since I only spend my money on gas and food, but it’s something that’s getting out of hand,” senior Lucas Moreno said.

“Gas prices are really affecting my family because that’s where a lot of their money is going because of driving to and from work and also picking me up from school. I don’t drive a lot because of the gas prices,” sophomore Chloe Lazeski said.

“I can’t afford gas anymore. My tank used to be $30 max, but now it’s $40. So now I can’t spend my money on anything else but gas,” junior Brennan Klinger said.

“Gas prices have made me more prone to wait for when my parents are using my car so they can pay for my gas. It’s my little secret tactic that I like to use. It occasionally works, but the prices have really made it hard to spend money on food and shopping since it takes a lot out of my card,” junior Charlotte Alley said.

“My car takes premium, and last week when I got gas it was $4.29 per gallon, and I only got half a tank, and it cost $40, and that drained all my paycheck and it’s annoying. I spent $60 on gas two weeks before that, and before then, it was only $4.19 per gallon, and it still was $60,” junior Tiye Freeman said.

“Gas prices have affected my spending because my car takes premium, so I have to edit my budget to be able to pay for the gas every week,” senior Alina Manzellan said.

“Gas prices have killed my pockets, and I get all this work in, but then the money doesn’t go anywhere. So this just goes on in my tank, because my tank prices have doubled, and it’s just been crazy. I can’t even drive nowhere,” senior Tony Cables said.

“I pay around $60 because I drive a truck. I pay for my gas every week, which I don’t have a job right now, which is really cutting into my expenses, because I had a lot of money saved up, but now, when I’m spending $60 every week just on gas, it’s really affecting me. I also have to drive slower because if I speed it really eats away at my gas. So this has encouraged me to slow down,” senior Ava Visco said.

“The gas prices have made me budget more with my spending and prioritize how much money I’m putting aside for gas instead of just free balling,” senior Seychelles Rotich said.

“Gas prices are making me use my whole paycheck on just gas. I can’t spend my money on anything else, like it’s just gas,” senior Christopher Laboto-Resendez said.

With students primarily earning minimum wage, but having the same car responsibilities as their parents, students are learning how to budget and how to save. While this is a good thing to learn, everyone is feeling the hole in their wallets that gas prices have created.