Oregon Gas Prices Steady, Campsite Reservations Offline
Published 03/30/2010
(Salem, Oregon) – Gas prices are holding steady, according to the AAA, but campers trying to reserve a spot in any of the state park systems will have an extra hoop to jump through for a time.
Oregon's state park campsite reservations system will be out of service from 5 p.m. March 31 until 8 a.m. April 14.
Reservations Northwest, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department's campsite reservations center, will not accept overnight and day-use reservation requests, either by phone or internet, during the two-week period.
The down time is needed to transfer current reservation, customer information and financial data from an outdated, 1996 reservations system to modern, well-supported software. Testing and final staff training will also take place during the two weeks.
All parks will honor existing reservations.
"During these two weeks, you can still camp in state parks," said Reservations Northwest Operations Manager Marilyn Borgelt. "Most of them are open and have plenty of first-come, first-served sites available. The only things you can't do are make or change reservations, or check campsite availability in advance."
Cancellations can still be made by calling Reservations Northwest, 1-800-452-5687. The center's information service (1-800-551-6949) also will continue to take calls.
The Oregon office of AAA says gas prices are remaining steady, despite soaring crude oil prices.
The price of crude oil soared above $82 per barrel this week, but retail gas prices are fairly stable and are even down slightly in some markets. The national average falls two cents this week to $2.80, while Oregon's average remains at $2.89.
“Crude oil prices surged more than $2 per barrel Monday, the biggest jump in six weeks,” said the AAA in press release. “But we haven’t seen a jump in pump prices yet, and gas prices may not climb dramatically if crude fails to pass the psychologically important mark of $83 per barrel.”
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