Posted by: admin Posted date: APRIL 20, 2012 In: USA | Comment : 0 | 12,081 views

There are 159,000 retail locations in the U.S. that sell fuel to the public. The number of gas stations has been declining over the past ten years due, in part, to increased competition, stricter environmental regulations, and shrinking gasoline profit margins.

The number of gasoline stations in the United States has been declining since 1994 when there were over 200,000 stations. From 2003 to 2006, those declines leveled off and in 2005, the number of stations increased slightly. However, since 2005, the number of stations has begun to decline again with a loss of more than 9,000 stations from 2010 to 2011.

Number of Gas Stations in The US

Gasoline Stations in the United States, 1994-2011

Year Number of Gas Stations

1994 202,878

1995 195,455

1996 190,246

1997 187,892

1998 182,596

1999 180,567

2000 175,941

2001 172,169

2002 170,018

2003 167,571

2004 167,346

2005 168,987

2006 167,476

2007 164,292

2008 162,476

2009 161,257

2010 159,899

2011 159,141

Source: National Petroleum News Survey