Where to find cheap gas right on the Parkway this summer and save

Prepare to have your mind blown.

We all know only suckers would buy gasoline at a toll road rest stop, right? We all know their prices are going to be the highest because, well, you’re sort of a captive audience with limited options. Right?

Not always.

There is a rest stop on the Garden State Parkway both northbound and southbound that is different. You will find significantly lower gas prices if you stop here. Before I tell you where, I need to explain how.

Summer gas prices are always higher here in New Jersey. We are under that EPA mandate to dispense “summer blend” which minimizes smog but is more costly to produce.

Add to that the fact that that nearly all gas stations on the Parkway are Sunoco stations regulated by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority and as such they must pay the state a cut of all sales and are they allowed to pass that cost on to the consumer.

But there are two rest stops, one northbound and one southbound, that because of an historical anomaly has gas stations that do not have to pay that cut to the state.

The Exxon and the Shell gas stations at the Colonia rest stops between 131B and 135 (one northbound side and one southbound side) do not have to pay.

Therefore, they do not have to jack up their prices to cover it.

You see, gas stations were there in that location before the Parkway was ever built in the 1950s therefore it’s a different set of rules.

Those stations sit on private land.

According to NJ Monthly, last month when all the Parkway rest stop Sunoco stations were charging about $3.60 per gallon for regular, here at the tiny best kept secret Colonia rest stops they were only charging $3.15 per gallon regular.

At a 45 cent difference per gallon in my 16-gallon SUV gas tank — that’s a $7.20 savings for a fill up. That’s significant.

Even Tom Feeney, spokesperson for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority admits it’s a best kept secret. “The difference can have a big impact when gas prices are either rising or falling quickly,” Feeney says to NJ Monthly. “It really defies expectations on a toll road. It catches people by surprise.”

So, if you’re just commuting or if you’re using that part of the Parkway to go down the shore this summer (or back), plan it out for a fill up at the Colonia rest stop gas stations between 131B and 135, if you want to save some bucks.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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