Gas Delivery Startups Want to Fill Up Your Car Anywhere, But It Might Not Be Legal (bloomberg.com) 460
Eric Newcomer, reporting for Bloomberg: A new crop of startups are trying to make gas stations obsolete. Tap an app, and they'll bring the gas to you, filling up your car while you're at work or at home. Filld, WeFuel, Yoshi, Purple and Booster Fuels have started operating in a few cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Palo Alto, Nashville, Tennessee, and Atlanta, Georgia. But officials in some of those cities say that driving around in a pickup truck with hundreds of gallons of gasoline might not be safe. "It is not permitted," said Lt. Jonathan Baxter, a spokesman for the San Francisco fire department, adding that if San Francisco residents see any companies fueling vehicles in the city, they should call the fire department. "We haven't talked to them. I don't know about that. It's news to me," said Nick Alexander, co-founder of Yoshi. "You can never ask for permission because no one will give it," said Chris Aubuchon, the chief executive officer at Filld. The Los Angeles Fire Department said it's drafting a policy around gasoline delivery. "Our current fire code does not allow this process; however, we are exploring a way this could be allowed with some restrictions," said Capt. Daniel Curry, a spokesman for the city's fire department.
I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:3, Insightful)
Gas stations have environmental controls to keep fuel from leaking into the environment...
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:4, Insightful)
And we don't have to have a fair meter or even hazmat endorsement
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:5, Insightful)
Sure, but with Web 3.0, you don't ask for permission or worry about regulations, and do whatever you want, no matter how harmful.
It's the Eric Cartman school of business, and it seems to be very popular these days.
It's the "Uber guide to evading pesky governmental regulation" approach - you just buy "activists" and lobby local governments to keep the hounds at bay until your service gains critical mass and can't be legislated away.
http://www.politico.com/story/... [politico.com]
Does corruption by any other name stink as strongly?
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Made even more insidious in that you also get a whole lot of activists for free by being hip and trendy from playing the 'old fogies don't understand' card.
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the heading is definitely missing,"disruptive technology" which seems to have taken over the whole cloud thing in marketing speech.
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Well, the other option is to go down the "Its not legal until we say it is"
That's a really disengenuous argument. Its legal to cart around any old crap in your car unless it's regulated because it's unsafe.
The reason regulations exist around transportation of petrol is because emperically it has been discovered to be rather unsafe if not done properly. Which is why regulations now exist.
Of course, "something bad might happen
Bad things did happen.
therefore we must regulate it into oblivion" arguments come o
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:5, Informative)
The actual model being used is "we require stationary gas retailers to be licensed, regulated, and inspected and are applying the same standard to mobile refueling."
One is legally regulated (already in place) the other is "oh shit, that is something current laws don't account for" retroactive regulation for something that isn't stationary.
From your quoted article
“Our current fire code does not allow this process; however, we are exploring a way this could be allowed with some restrictions,”
Which is utter bullshit. Take a look here (hint, already legal) http://www.transferflow.com/fu... [transferflow.com]
With a Transfer Flow refueling tank, you don’t have to guess! Our refueling tanks are Department of Transportation (DOT) legal to carry and transfer gas, diesel, ethanol, methanol, kerosene and jet fuel in all 50 U.S. states. Having a DOT legal refueling tank from Transfer Flow means you won’t get red tagged and fined by your Highway Patrol for carrying an illegal fuel tank in the bed of your truck. Click here to see our Special Permit from the Department of Transportation.
Good luck preventing that which already exists, simply because it disrupts existing markets.
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:4, Informative)
Legal to carry does not mean legal to distribute commercially. You'll need additional permits in each state to do that, and I bet they don't have them.
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:4, Insightful)
Sure, but with Web 3.0, you don't ask for permission or worry about regulations, ...
How is this not something that already has regulations? Sure, this may be happening at greater volumes, but AAA and tow trucks and the lot have been delivering gas for ages! On the larger end of the scale, tankers have been doing it for ages to gas stations. So, any regulation they add regarding this in particular will have to say "hauling more than N gallons of gas, and less than N (or some class/certification thing to exclude tankers)".
I doubt it's carte-blance illegal today. Heck, just drive a big truck w/ two normal tanks, and pump from one of them. Plenty of large pickups have backup tanks, and that should fulfill all the on-the-road safety rules already. Where's the problem?
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:4, Insightful)
Yeah, those are proper tanks. Competent mechanics carry fuel in proper jerry-cans.
This service isn't going to be like that. It's going to be retards on mopeds carrying the fuel in old wine bottles in a rucksack.
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Correct. If some of these outfits start conflagrations causing millions of dollars of damage and a few deaths they'll be sued out of business, or people will switch to their competitors that don't destroy their vehicles and homes and kill their pets loved ones.
That's the magic of the MARKET. No need for regulations which inevitably lead to death panels and mandatory gay marriage.
--
roman_mir
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Sure, but when is the last time you saw anyone spill any significant quantity of gas while filling their car at a gas station? Maybe a drop or two here or there. And I don't recall seeing any magical method at gas stations to collect gas runoff or evaporated gas. For that matter, it's fairly obvious that a lot more unburned gasoline evaporates into the atmosphere directly out of the tailpipe of the car than from the filling area of the gas station. So it really isn't a big deal if one or two drops spill in
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As I understand it, one of the purposes of the catalytic converter is to eliminate the latter and (at least here in the US), all gas stations do reclaim the fumes from the pump.
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Do they still reclaim fumes? I thought it was just a seal on the gas hole now.
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Umm, I've seen the automatic shutoffs fail and people dribble a few gallons down the side of their car. Most gas stations have an oil/water separator to catch the bulk of oil from leaving the site via runoff though they aren't perfect. They also have spill kits of absorbents if there is a mishap. Additionally, many urban areas do have stage 2 recovery of vapors from fueling. You can see the rubber hose that fits around the fill nozzle.
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Depends on the state. Some states require rather bulky mechanisms to prevent gas evaporation.
Also, the gas stations tanks and plumbing are highly regulated and have strict things in place.
Yes, you are right about there existing standards for tanker trucks. However, they aren't going to be taking a tanker truck into a random parking lot, they are going to take a light truck. Yes you could devise some regulations around such a fuel carrier, but I don't think that's what these startups are currently doing.
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However, they aren't going to be taking a tanker truck into a random parking lot, they are going to take a light truck. Yes you could devise some regulations around such a fuel carrier, but I don't think that's what these startups are currently doing.
Tow trucks have been doing this for years and they use standard 5 gallon cans. The only difference I see is that we're now talking 20+ gallons at a time versus 5-10 gallons. Even then, there is a lawn mowing service that frequents the gas station near my house and has a row of five gallon cans on the back of his truck. He easily has 35+ gallons. Many semi trucks have 4 tanks that each hold more than 100 gallons each and they also sell tanks for pickups for farmers to take gas home. Basically, all this
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I have two legal in-ground diesel tanks up at my home. Even above ground storage gets pretty well regulated but in-ground was a job and a half. The EPA doesn't take kindly to it even if you're by the book and an accident happens. I actually carry extra insurance just for that and the installation itself is insured by the installers for something like 12 more years. Hell, I don't even store much - just 2000 gallons. I understand the regulation gets even more strict with gasoline.
Err... In case you're curious
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:5, Insightful)
Glad you asked, the normal shutoff failed at a pump I was using and gasoline started spilling onto the ground, and it was newer pump without the manual shutoff level. Finally saw kill switch for the whole island of pumps....four gallons plus on the ground. Guy running station saw the mess and killed ALL the pumps and fire department came. Fun times.
You have no idea how the tanker trucks are restricted and designed, do you? The "basic standards" completely prohibit what this company is doing, you can't carry and deliver liquid fuel in *anything* you please, nor to *anywhere* you please, check your state laws your state fire marshal would arrest your ass!
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:5, Informative)
Have you ever actually BEEN to a gas station? Did you ever wonder 'why is that concrete slab there'? The whole area is usually asphalt, but where the pumps (and where the tanker delivers) is concrete. And that concrete usually has a pattern of grooves around the perimeter. Do you think that is just a nice design they all happened to like? The concrete is there for three reasons: prevent spills (which DO happen) from seeping into the ground, keep spills in one place (the grooves) so it can be properly cleaned up, and because gasoline is incredibly damaging to asphalt.
When you are done looking at the ground, look up. See all those nozzles sticking out of the canopy? More fancy design? No. Automatic fire suppression. Can you think of any reason THAT might be a good idea?
Yes, gas station leaks do sometimes happen. And who is responsible when they do? The property owner. Just think of how happy parking lot owners are going to be when some jackass not only damages the lot with a spill, but leaves them with contaminated property THEY are responsible for. No sane parking lot owner would ever allow something stupid like this in their lot.
And where did you get the idiotic idea that unburned fuel comes out the tailpipe? That stuff you see dripping is water, not fuel. If unburned fuel is coming out something is seriously wrong, and an overheated converter and possible vehicle fire are coming shortly.
Re:I can see this as an environmental disaster (Score:5, Interesting)
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia did it first! (Score:4, Funny)
When I read the headline, I immediately thought of this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
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Combination of The Gang Solves the Gas Crisis + Charlie Catches a Leprechaun: Gas Delivery 2.0!
What they mean is.. (Score:5, Insightful)
What they say:
"Our current fire code does not allow this process; however, we are exploring a way this could be allowed with some restrictions," said Capt. Daniel Curry
What they mean:
"We will soon let you know how much we are going to tax your new business opportunity!"
Re:What they mean is.. (Score:5, Informative)
The alternative is letting it go unregulated, watching some fly by night operation have their delivery driver explode along with all his cargo, the execs of the company 'vanishing', a media shitstorm, and the industry being literally banned.
Re:What they mean is.. (Score:4)
Call me a statist all you like, but I am 100% for regulation of the equivalent of gas tanker trucks meandering neighborhoods and commercial parks topping off people's cars, and having taxes on that service in order to fund the regulation, because I don't want to see some 20-something communications major driving around every day with a U-Haul full of jerry cans tied down with bungee cords. I say this even though I am 100% behind having the service available, because I'd find it amazingly useful.
While I also think it is useful some regulation is clearly needed. One problem I see is how do you overcome someone else's stupidity? For example, people know you don't smoke near a gas pump, but someone walking around the corner with a lit cigarette could easily and unknowingly flick it near where you have gas fumes; so some sort of vapor capture system is a must. In addition, the fuel storage and handling equipment must have some minimum safety standard to meet to be used. Portable fuel trucks exist and are in use at airports everywhere so the design standards are already known and just need to be applied to a new use. Driver training, as you point out, is critical as well. This idea could be a lot more disruptive than people anticipated...
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people know you don't smoke near a gas pump
You've never filled up at a gas station before have you?
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Nobody considers gas stations with idiot people filling up their tanks to be dangerous (except Oregon), with all sort of gas fires caused by everything from static electricity to cell phones (disputed).
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So they are safe in Colorado because no cell phone has ever caused a fire at a gas station.
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You were never a teen-aged boy, were you?
Cigarettes make absolutely lousy ignition sources. You can flick lit cigarettes into a bucket of gasoline all day without ever getting a flame. You can use a puddle of gasoline to put your cigarette out if you want to. People used to smoke and even light their cigarettes while filling the car, even more so before the vapor blocking (and then vapor capturing) hoods on the nozzles.
Static discharge is a much bigger danger, and even that isn't very dangerous.
People fi
Re:What they mean is.. (Score:5, Funny)
You were never a teen-aged boy, were you?
Cigarettes make absolutely lousy ignition sources.
Well you clearly never watch any action movies, do you?
Regulation straw-man alert (Score:4, Informative)
We already have a national disaster waiting to happen.
Millions of untrained laypersons fuel their vehicles, and often other people's vehicles, unlicensed and unregulated.
Hate to disrupt your bubble, but that shit is all regulated to hell. It's on specific property, and those facilities have to get inspected frequently.
So yeah, it is regulated... already.
Re:What they mean is.. (Score:5, Insightful)
For every honest businessman who wants to do good by their customers, there's a bunch of shady assholes looking to make a quick buck, and no amount of pretending the bad actors don't exist will actually make them disappear.
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So regulations should be narrowly tailored. "Something bad might happen" should never be used as a justification. Regulate specific things to prevent specific problems -- problems that have been shown to really be problems, not imaginary storytelling.
You don't need some crazy quintuple-hulled tanker truck to prevent guys with 50 gas cans tied to a rusty Datsun pickup from operating. Just require a secure container, some limit on the quantity of fuel held on each truck, and some system to avoid spills.
...the guy who cheaps out either escapes to the Cayman islands or gets cooked by his own gasoline.
Wo
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The regulation on gasoline tanker trucks is not purely for state and local profit (probably negligible to that end), it is primarily about the fact that they are carrying thousands of gallons of a moderately incendiary liquid with a tendency to evaporate into a moderately explosive vapor in normal atmospheric conditions.
A pickup truck with a bunch of gas cans rattling around in the back definitely needs some examination and consideration.
Judging from the picture, they are at least compliant enough to includ
Re:What they mean is.. (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:What they mean is.. (Score:5, Insightful)
There is the question of vapor leaking. Unburned hydrocarbons aka gas fumes contribute to smog. They are rather nasty. That is the reason that cars since the 1960s have had carbon canisters and PCV valves. They were some of the first population controls and made a huge improvement in emissions for almost no cost or impact on performance. In areas with air quality problems gas pumps will often have a capture device that will capture the gas fumes when you fill up your car.
I am sure that they are mandatory in California.
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were some of the first population controls
I knew all along that this "protect the environment" crap was all about weeding out the non-desirables amongst us!
FillD? (Score:5, Funny)
I'm going to start a competitor named FillDD. The two D's are for a "double-dose of pumpin".
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i would use that service... repeatedly.
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Congratulations, the Web 3.0 Upgrayedd achievement has been unlocked!
I've had this for years... (Score:2)
It's called AAA.
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Don't call AAA in San Francisco. Someone from the fire department will arrest you.
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Did they have a battery compatible with your car? I recently had a similar situation (at home, fortunately) and AAA wouldn't sell me a battery because they didn't stock batteries for my kind of car. Of course, they jumped the car and I drove to the battery store.
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I think the fire department's problem is with Nick and Chris sending their cousin out in an old pickup truck loaded with 40 5 gallon cans in the bed and e-mailing them delivery instructions which they read on their cellphone while driving this firebomb around the city. I doubt there are any ordinances (yet) against carrying an excess of gasoline containers in a vehicle, but the thing they are drafting may come up with some kind of language attempting to describe how to transport additional gasoline safely.
The big problem (Score:5, Interesting)
with pumping gasoline is the spillage. In the Netherlands, all gas stations are required to have non-porous paving to make sure spills don't end up in the ground.
The other problem is that it's inefficient. Instead of people filling up at the next station they come across, some guy has to drive everywhere to fill up one customer at a time.
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They could take orders in large batches and then use some kind of car density per square block algorithm to dispatch a fuel vehicle to once it is cost efficient to do so.
Or... they could just camp out at the large mega-mart parking lots, allow you to see the sign and submit your fuel order from your phone!
If only they could be trusted to fuel the car without my presence. Gas locks are there for a reason...
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Not really. I almost always find a gas station along my route, so the excess distance is less than 100 yards.
Electric Envy (Score:4, Interesting)
Make gas stations obsolete? (Score:5, Interesting)
A new crop of startups are trying to make gas stations obsolete.
Where then are they getting the gas from? If we're talking about pickup truck beds full of (large containers of) gasoline I would expect they are still filling them at gas stations. They are then just up-charging the people who are paying for it for their own cars. The gas stations are still selling just as much gas, and in fact might do better as this process could involve more consumption.
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There's also the question of profit. Gas stations typically don't make much money from the gas itself. That's why they have those mini-markets with junk food, sodas, etc. They make much of their profits on those sales. These "app-enabled mobile gas stations" are going to have to charge more for gas to get a profit*. I'll just stop by a gas station instead. It's not really that huge of a bother.
* Of course, this assumes "make a profit" is actually a goal of theirs instead of "work on a cool thing for a
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You are not the target market, the target market are people who are so damned busy that they can't afford to take 10 minutes out of their drive to/from wherever to stop and fill the tank. To the target market, this $10 (or whatever they are charging) "convenience fee" is worth more than the time and hassle of possibly spilling fuel on their shoes.
Yeah, I'm not the target market, either.
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I'm going to guess they're not filling up at gas stations, but have supplier deals with fuel distributors.
But yes, petrol stations make less than 5 cents a gallon typically from fuel sales. The fuel pumps are just there so you come in and buy other stuff. These startups are probably working in the red. They'd have to make enough from the surcharge to pay for drivers and their infrastructure. Maybe they're partnering with fuel companies for a cut?
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Along certain political borders, you can save $0.30 per gallon by driving an extra 5 miles to get your gas. Ain't nobody got time for that, unless you're filling a 500 gallon tank while you're there. Combine this with a $10 "convenience fee" per fill up for the app customers and it sounds like a profitable business model to me: sell 15 gallons at market rate, $10 for the fee, $4.50 for the margin on the fuel, drive an average of 5 miles per fillup -> $3 in vehicle depreciation + 30 minutes of driver ti
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Those differences are usually tax-related. Once you drive across the border into the higher-cost jurisdiction, you're going to be responsible for collecting the appropriate taxes from the end user (and selling the fuel without collecting the taxes is probably going to land you in a wee bit of trouble, because few things irritate the government more than failing to provide the piece of the pie you are mandated to).
In Soviet Russia (Score:2)
Texaco comes to you!
Badly written article (Score:3, Insightful)
Look, OBVIOUSLY it is possible to get permission to legally drive a vehicle around full of gasoline. That's how the gasoline stations get their gasoline. They usually need special tested equipment designed to carry hazardous liquids - and the license to drive said equipment.
It is also obviously legal to fill a car with gasoline at places other than gas stations - people that run out of gas do this all the time using a one gallon container.
There would have to be a specific law prohibiting this particular job.
Also this business is a STUPID idea. There is always a premium for delivery and for the premium for a delivery of a hazardous liquid should be so high as to make this a financially stupid idea. Gasoline stations are plentiful, on roads, normal people never run out of it and don't need the minor time savings of delivery.
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Also this business is a STUPID idea. There is always a premium for delivery and for the premium for a delivery of a hazardous liquid should be so high as to make this a financially stupid idea. Gasoline stations are plentiful, on roads, normal people never run out of it and don't need the minor time savings of delivery.
People pay for stupid things all the time. Sure, I could go get my groceries, but I can just pay someone else to deliver them to me; someone else cuts my grass too. There should certainly be some regulation because its a moderately hazardous liquid. But, why the hate? Why _should_ it be so high that it won't work financially? Free market and all that. There's plenty of rich people for whom paying $4 a gallon makes sense so they don't have to go to the gas station. Let 'em.
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Look, OBVIOUSLY it is possible to get permission to legally drive a vehicle around full of gasoline. That's how the gasoline stations get their gasoline.
Not in a pickup truck though.....
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Look, OBVIOUSLY it is possible to get permission to legally drive a vehicle around full of gasoline. That's how the gasoline stations get their gasoline. They usually need special tested equipment designed to carry hazardous liquids - and the license to drive said equipment.
True, but they probably have a lot of restrictions about who can driver them and where they can drive, I doubt you can hire a high school student to deliver into your driveway.
It is also obviously legal to fill a car with gasoline at places other than gas stations - people that run out of gas do this all the time using a one gallon container.
There would have to be a specific law prohibiting this particular job.
That would be interesting. I could certainly see wanting to let people do one-off emergency jerry cans while prohibiting the many safety/environmental issues that come up with a widescale deployment. Whether that's encoded in current laws is another question.
Also this business is a STUPID idea. There is always a premium for delivery and for the premium for a delivery of a hazardous liquid should be so high as to make this a financially stupid idea. Gasoline stations are plentiful, on roads, normal people never run out of it and don't need the minor time savings of delivery.
Maybe, even if there is a small premium on cost (not certain, real estate on
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As for the premium, well don't you think gaz station take a profit
No, they don't. They make a few pennies per gallon, and if that's all a gas station sold, it would go out of business within a month. The real money is in the convenience store. They sell snacks, drinks, cigarettes, etc., at a huge markup. The gas is just there to get people to stop. That's also why all these gas station are putting up those obnoxious screens on the pumps, which play videos highlighting their "delicious snacks, and refreshing drinks." It's all about the up-sell.
Translation (Score:5, Insightful)
"You can never ask for permission because no one will give it"
Translation:
"We are fully aware that our business model violates multiple safety and environmental laws. But we're an app, so fuck you."
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Actually, they have a point. What they are doing isn't already neatly pidgeon holed. Naturally, there is no beureucrat willing to stick his neck out by thinking on the problem and making a binding ruling that it's approved. The request would likely just move from inbox to inbox for a few years.
If they want an answer sometime this century, they're doing it right. At least a few of them seem to have made a good faith effort to comply with likely applicable regulations.
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I agree completely, if what you mean by "isn't neatly pigeon holed" is "mind-numbingly stupid".
Gas Delivery? (Score:2)
We've already got that. . . (Score:2, Offtopic)
A new crop of startups are trying to make gas stations obsolete
It's called. . . the Electric Vehicle.
Think the EV is not there yet? I bet it "gets there" before "gas delivery services" ever do. . .
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It's got to be the stupidest time to set up a gas delivery business. Just as gas powered cars are going to be obsoleted. OK, they're not obsolete yet - but it's hardly a new business model that has a future.
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Actually, this business model makes a lot more sense in an environment without a gas station on every corner -- people are much likely to pay a delivery fee for something they can't pick up conveniently themselves. If anything, I'd say they're jumping the gun on gasoline being a niche product.
Illegal? (Score:2)
"It is not permitted,"
Oh really? [dfiequipment.com] A pickup truck with a bunch of gas cans in the bed might not be wise. But even for pickups, there are approved fueling setups.
Petrol sales is sort of a cartel. You have a market, based on your service station location. And you are given a retail price. Violate any of these agreements and your station will suddenly cease to receive deliveries. If people start buying fuel in bulk and hauling it into other market areas, established dealers will be upset. I can see where the fire departments might
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Farmers do this, municipalities do this, AAA does this. Hell I'll bet even fire departments do this.
"When it comes to in-bed refueling tanks, it’s hard to know what’s legal and what’s not. With a Transfer Flow refueling tank, you don’t have to guess! Our refueling tanks are Department of Transportation (DOT) legal to carry and transfer gas, diesel, ethanol, methanol, kerosene and jet fuel in all 50 U.S. states."
https://www.transferflow.com/f... [transferflow.com]
uber drivers as well? (Score:5, Funny)
Do you realy want to be in a uber that is also a tanker truck?
'Mid-air' refueling (Score:2)
I want the service where a drone refuels my car ... while I'm driving.
Charlie, Dennis, Mac, already did it (Score:2)
Comment removed (Score:3)
hurting, not helping (Score:2)
making it easier to pollute the environment is not helping people, it's enabling an already damaging technology.
Diesel works better (Score:2)
Call a company 'Pit Crew' (Score:2)
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Yoga?
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They don't typically whip out a hose and start pouring out pints, though.
Re:Could work (Score:4, Insightful)
Tow trucks do this all the time. In some places, the police do, too. It's hard to come up with a clear reason why one truck carrying twenty properly filled, properly made gas cans is that much less safe than twenty trucks carrying one.
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It's hard to come up with a clear reason why one truck carrying twenty properly filled, properly made gas cans is that much less safe than twenty trucks carrying one.
It's not hard at all to me. It's simple enough.
1. Even properly made gas cans can leak.
2. The probability of a gas can leaking increases the more of them you have
3. Gasoline ignites only at specific stoichiometric ratios
4. A single gas can is unlikely to reach the stoichiometric ratio, much less over a significant area
5. Multiple gas cans in a single vehicle are much more likely to reach that ratio, and over a larger area as well.
6. A 10 gallon fuel fire is bad enough, a 200 gallon fuel fire is quite ano
Don't forget the 2012 Daytona 500 (Score:2)
Do you want that to happen in your parking lot or in front of your home?
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Long as the trucks/tankers are marked properly and reinforced enough and the drivers properly vetted.
Well having people be W2's make that more likely but if you go down the 1099 route then a lot of that can go a way.
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You're aware that there are trucks that bring the gas to the gas station in the first place and dump it into holes in the ground via hoses?
Granted, I can see startups trying to put a plastic water tank on the back of a pickup and call it the same thing, so that's a consideration. If the delivery trucks and tanks are at least as reinforced as the huge tankers that deliver to stations, I can't see this as a problem. Worst case, the small delivery truck is a smaller bomb on wheels than the big tanker is.
Re:Forget about security (Score:5, Informative)
Granted, I can see startups trying to put a plastic water tank on the back of a pickup and call it the same thing
Ding! From TFA:
Purple has a fleet of about 80 cars driving around Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County and Seattle with up to a half-dozen five-gallon gas canisters in the trunk.
Are they fucking insane?
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They are planning to increase profits by also providing delivery of fertilizer and det cord.
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For anyone who doesn't quite understand the insanity of keeping gas cans in your trunk, gasoline vapor is significantly denser than air, and will collect in low places, including the trunk of your car, and by extension the cabin as well, as it is usually not completely closed off.
That's why you should never fill a gas can while it's sitting in your trunk or in the bed of a pickup. Always put it on the ground when filling it, then place it back in the trunk or bed, to prevent spilled vapor from collecting.
Pe
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That tanker and SOME of the fuel delivery trucks are driven by commercial drivers. The other delivery trucks are driven by drivers with no particular training and a regular drivers license.
Part of the problem is the lack of even best practices since this is a new type of business.
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I can't see this as a problem. Worst case, the small delivery truck is a smaller bomb on wheels than the big tanker is.
Do tanker trucks drive down residential streets and double park while pumping fuel? Oh ...
Re: (Score:2)
In my area? Yes. Well, they don't usually double park, pulling into your driveway in order to reach the tank...
That being said, the big tankers in my area have the tank itself built to a much higher standard than 'half a dozen gas cans in the back', it's built higher up, so if rear-ended the striking vehicle is unlikely to reach the tank itself, and the semis are at least really visible.
Re: (Score:3)
There are the guys you're looking for:
https://flavorwire.files.wordp... [wordpress.com]
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
We hold these Apps to be self-evident, that all Apps are created equal, that they are endowed by their Compiler with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Apps, Appity and the pursuit of Appiness.
Re: (Score:2)
And that cows may not be quartered in private houses in peacetime, nor in war without the owners consent.
Re: (Score:2)
Then you go to the wrong car and you get shot at before you can explain you're siphoning gas INTO the car.
much does it cost to get drivers with CDL hazmat (Score:4, Insightful)
much does it cost to get drivers with an CDL with hazmat and full insurance vs some uber where they don't even have the CDL and the insurance has time gaps.
Re: (Score:2)
That and it's actually fairly hard to get fuel oil burning.
Re: (Score:2)
They make diapers that big? Sign me up!
BTW, I said it was a drag, not that I don't go to the gas station like a big boy and fuel my own car. It's a drag, as in sometimes it's nice to have the pizza delivered instead of having to put on my diaper and drive in my gas-less car to pick up my own pizza that I paid for by working my lazy job!
All kidding aside, I do feel that lazy sometimes, don't we all?