Cheap gas in the Kansas City metropolitan area is the rule. The lower price of gasoline squares with the overall affordability of the area. Geographically, Kansas City development radiates from all directions at the confluence of the Missouri and Kansas rivers on the prairie.
The plentiful land and subsequent sprawl effectively caps property costs, and these savings are passed onto the consumer at the register. Today, the U.S. Department of Energy calculates average regular grade gasoline prices at $2.528, nationally.
Certainly, attempting to hawk $2.528 gas anywhere near Kansas City would represent one way to run any business into the ground.
K.C. gas prices average $2.244 and regularly drop towards $2.15 deeper into the state of Missouri. These low prices rival any U.S. location in terms of affordability.
I must speculate that the price action is a function of Kansas City’s tornado alley geography, which perfectly straddles the Midwest plains equidistant from the energy prolific Gulf Coast and interior Rockies. Although the region is a disaster for tornadoes, the location is ideal for buying cheap gas.
Crude oil costs and municipal tax policy combine to account for 70% of costs at the pump. Hence, State House tax legislature remains a primary factor behind interstate price disparity.
Per the Kansas City metropolitan area, smart consumers must appreciate the separate gas tax mandates set by both Topeka and Jefferson City to plan accordingly.
According to The Tax Foundation, Kansas drivers are slapped with a 25-cent per gallon tax, while Missouri consumers must pony up change at a minuscule 17.3-cent rate. The Show Me State’s meager gas tax bill is the seventh lowest in the country.
Buying cheap Kansas City gas is more so a function of which areas (STATE) to avoid, than that of aggressively seeking out particular pockets. Affordable K.C. prices are indeed, plentiful, and the playbook relies more so upon common sense.
We will logically attack the cheap gas proposal from opposite ends of the spectrum. This article begins by exposing the particular Kansas City metro filling stations that must be dismissed at all costs, prior to closing with our presentation that outlines viable alternatives to said establishments.
Where NOT to Buy Gas in Kansas City
Do not buy gas in the State of Kansas.
Specifically, avoid purchasing fuel in Shawnee and Overland Park. Shawnee and Overland Park are bedroom communities of the middle class that are frequently cited atop “America’s Best Places to Live” lists.
Of course, these two locales are death traps for expensive gas relative to Kansas City.
Gas is moving from $2.30 – $2.36 in Shawnee and Overland Park, KS. The price action is a total joke, considering the fact that $2.20 readings beckon within 2 miles at the Missouri border, or even directly north into Kansas City, Kansas.
Conoco, Shell, BP, and Phillips 66 are posted up at Overland Park to offer expensive gas. The U.S. 69 and I-435 junctions all represent the typical offenders for high priced gas into Johnson County suburbia. Jayhawks must pay up for the convenience of making the direct connection to 69 and I-35, or the 435 Loop.
For example, Conoco and BP are both strategically positioned at Antioch Road and W. 135th Street off 69 to hawk $2.36 gas in Overland Park. Meanwhile, Phillips 66 and BP patrol the entrance to I-435 at U.S. 169 / Metcalf Avenue, and flash $2.31 for regular unleaded.
Overland Park motorists should simply mosey 2 miles east to the border at State Line Road for $2.21 gas. The Phillips 66 at State Line and I-435 in Kansas City, MO would be the most convenient location. Although, prices will break $2.20 in Belton, I would not advise high tailing deeper into exurbia to save 2 cents.
Per Shawnee, access to KS Highway 7 dominates the price activity. 66th Street, off Shawnee Mission Parkway is a pocket of $2.31 gasoline and prices spike to $2.36 at the 5501 Hedge Lane Shell leading into the Kansas River approach.
Shawnee motorists will discover that price plunge beneath the $2.30 floor immediately into Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas.
Buy gas in Missouri, or head directly north to Highway 32 and KCK’s I-635 junctions. Valero and QuickTrip are hawking gas for $2.27 at the KS 32 and 635 interchange.
Personally, I find it miraculous that Shawnee and Overland Park wholesalers are able to move fuel for $2.36 and actually stay in business.
Where to Buy Cheap Gas in Kansas City
Take your pick.
Valero is selling cheap gas for $2.19 in downtown Kansas City, Missouri at the corner of W. 6th Street and Wyandotte. This downtown Valero is strategically positioned immediately off I-29 / 35 feeder ramps into Central Kansas City and marks the best store for cheap gas from all points K.C.
Missouri’s Independence and Lee’s Summit are the antithesis of the aforementioned Shawnee and Overland Park. Independence and Lee’s Summit both feature gas prices that remain outrageously cheap.
Sinclair is peddling bargain bin gasoline for $2.13 off I-70 at Route 40 and Blue Ridge Road in Independence. Meanwhile, Missouri Route 78 / 23rd Street, Lee’s Summit Road, U.S. 24, and Chipman, are all major crossroads for cheap $2.15 gas in Independence and Lee’s Summit, Missouri.
Happy Trails.
Where to Buy Cheap Gas in Kansas City, Sources:
Kansas City, http://www.kansascity.com/
The State of Missouri, http://www.mo.gov/
Kansas City Gas Prices, http://www.kcgasprices.com/
