Quote:
Originally Posted by Enoch Root
What? No.
A lot of things are purchased without service now, but that was not the case in the past. You want to buy gas? We'll pump it for you, wash your windshield, and check the oil.
People would choose which station they want to based on service.
It changed in the 80s (IIRC) when gas prices jumped significantly, and price became the primary concern.
|
You kinda answered the what/when, but not the why (aside from a general guess about prices, which is only part of the answer).
https://www.convenience.org/Topics/F...f-Self-Fueling
Quote:
It was unheard of to pump your own gas in 1964, and it was also prohibited in most of the country, based on state fire codes. (Today self-service is still prohibited in New Jersey and Oregon, as well as in scattered municipalities across the country, particularly in Massachusetts.)
...
Gas stations had dabbled in self-serve before the 1960s. In 1947, Frank Urich opened the first self-service gasoline station in Los Angeles. The unbranded station featured rows of gleaming pumps and girls on roller skates who zoomed around to collect money and reset dispensers. At these early self-serve stations, the pumps ran by a mechanical computer that allowed an attendant to manually turn the pump back to zero for each new customer. The worker also collected money and returned for customers who pumped their own fuel.
Some unbranded stations switched to this type of self-service for gasoline, but the idea didn’t catch on with many retailers at the time. The major oil companies continued to compete with one another via unique gimmicks—such as gasoline-pump shaped salt and pepper shakers—and promoting clean restrooms. And customers remained very loyal to particular fuel brands.
|
So the better answers seem to be: safety and tech/logistics (stations needed someone to read the amount at the pump and reset it each time, so they might as well pump it, too).
Quote:
The 1973 and 1974 gasoline shortage further fueled the drive to self-service. Long lines at gas stations prompted California to pass a law that every station had to post price signs if they weren’t already doing so. “People waited in line a long time and didn’t know what the price was until they got to the pump. Then they had to buy gas or go to another station and wait in another line,”
The public, on the other hand, loved the idea from the start. Because convenience stores could sell unbranded gasoline from self-service pumps cheaper than the branded, full-service stations, customers flocked to convenience stores for their fill ups.
“The public is interested in lower prices, and immediately went for self-service gasoline,” said Roscoe. With gasoline typically selling for 20 cents per gallon, a discount of 2 cents per gallon translated into a 10% savings. “That was significant enough to bring people in.”
|
Interesting that price advertising wasn't necessarily common until the 70s. I suspect price concerns correlate with the proliferation of vehicles to the middle-class. It also seems as simple as increased demand prompted new solutions...which is exactly what will happen with EVs.