In the late 70's/80's the gas station/service (mechanic) model eventually evolved into the gas station/convenience store model we know today.
Now it seems the current trajectory will evolve from gas station/convenience store to unmanned gas pumps only.
No more weak coffee and snickers bars served up by Prajeet and Ahmad for late night/early morning travelers ...
Unmanned gas pumps exist in other countries. Iceland, for example, has a mix of stations that have a convenience store, as well as smaller stations that just contain a few gas pumps, pay with a card and be on your way.
(A nice feature of the Icelandic pumps - it asks you how much you want to pre-approve - so you don't run the risk of eating your credit limit/cash (on a debit card) with a large hold).
Similarly, electric car chargers are also generally unmanned, and in the future world, it doesn't necessarily line up with the gas station convenience store model. A lot of Tesla superchargers are built near restaurants and regular retail, which makes sense, although they are also showing up at Wawas and other convenience stores now (which I've found helpful at night when normal things are closed...)
In the late 70's/80's the gas station/service (mechanic) model eventually evolved into the gas station/convenience store model we know today. Now it seems the current trajectory will evolve from gas station/convenience store to unmanned gas pumps only.
No more weak coffee and snickers bars served up by Prajeet and Ahmad for late night/early morning travelers ...
Unmanned gas pumps exist in other countries. Iceland, for example, has a mix of stations that have a convenience store, as well as smaller stations that just contain a few gas pumps, pay with a card and be on your way.
(A nice feature of the Icelandic pumps - it asks you how much you want to pre-approve - so you don't run the risk of eating your credit limit/cash (on a debit card) with a large hold).
Similarly, electric car chargers are also generally unmanned, and in the future world, it doesn't necessarily line up with the gas station convenience store model. A lot of Tesla superchargers are built near restaurants and regular retail, which makes sense, although they are also showing up at Wawas and other convenience stores now (which I've found helpful at night when normal things are closed...)