BLOG: PA ranks #44 in Cost To Operate Car. How Does Your State Rank?
By Jim Donovan: Is the cost of owning a car driving you into the poor house? Well just be thankful that you don't live in Georgia ( any Georgia residents reading this have my sympathy ). Georgia is the most expensive state to operate a motor vehicle. On the flip side, Oregon is the cheapest. That is according to a new Bankrate.com report.
Bankrate factored in the costs of gasoline, insurance, repairs, taxes and fees. In Georgia, a typical driver spends $4,233 per year to operate his or her vehicle. That is almost double the cost in Oregon ($2,204). The national average is $3,201.
Fortunately this is one report where the Delaware Valley falls closer to the bottom. In our region New Jersey comes in around the midway mark at #23, in the Garden State the average driver spends $3257 per year. Delaware ranks #38 at $2846 and Pennsylvania is way down at #44, drivers spending around $2764 per year.
So what makes Georgia so expensive? Georgians spend a lot of time in their cars thanks in part to Atlanta's sprawling communities and a lack of public transportation. Those long commutes lead to above-average gasoline costs and insurance rates. And Georgia has the highest state automobile taxes and fees in the nation. While Oregonians benefit from the absence of a state sales tax as well as relatively low car insurance costs. Plus, the typical Beaver State resident drives 16% fewer miles than the national average.
California ($3,966), Wyoming ($3,938), Rhode Island ($3,913) and Nevada ($3,886) round out the five most expensive states.
Alaska ($2,227), South Dakota ($2,343), Montana ($2,660) and Indiana ($2,698) join Oregon among the five cheapest states.
To see where your state ranks in the Bankrate.com report click below:
http://www.bankrate.com/finance/auto/car-ownership-costs-by-state.aspx
