SAM I TOOK DOWN MY POST BECAUSE THE LINK ONLY WORKED ON AOL... New Jersey May Drop Ban on Self-Service Gas Stations ....
TRENTON, April 27 — There are certain truths about New Jersey that have always seemed to be immutable: It is the most densely populated state. It has the highest property taxes in the country. And it is one of the few places left where you cannot pump your own gasoline.

But if Gov. Jon S. Corzine has his way, drivers may soon be in for a cultural about-face.

Mr. Corzine proposed Thursday that the state lift its self-serve ban as part of a package of transportation proposals on carpooling, mass transit and enforcement, intended to cushion residents from rising gasoline prices. And while he cautioned that his proposal was just a pilot program that would be limited to perhaps three months, he said that self-serve gasoline could save drivers about 5 or 6 cents a gallon, if properly handled.

"We think it's a responsible thing to do," he said. "If we can enforce the pass-through and we can mainstream that over a period of time, then it would be permanent and broadly applied throughout the state."

The proposal would first be tested on the New Jersey Turnpike, where 8 of the 12 rest areas will be equipped with credit-card readers at the pumps by Memorial Day, said Kris Kolluri, the state's transportation commissioner. And since many drivers are from out of state, they would be familiar with the procedure.

The idea does require legislative approval, however, and early reaction was mixed. Assemblyman John S. Wisniewski, a Democrat from Middlesex County who is chairman of the transportation committee, said in a statement, "Telling a motorist that self-serve will save them money at the pump is like telling someone that they could save money on a new home by building it themselves."

But Senator Gerald Cardinale, a conservative Republican from Bergen County, praised Mr. Corzine. "I think he's on the right track," he said. "I've been at this for over 20 years, and it's the first time that a governor has seriously looked at this issue."

Should New Jersey lift the ban, Oregon will be the only state prohibiting self-serve stations. But Oregon has no sales tax, and Mr. Corzine in his recent budget proposed that New Jersey's sales tax go from 6 percent to 7 percent to help fill a $4 billion shortfall.

"The joke is when babies are born in Oregon, the doctor slaps their bottom, 'No self-serve and no sales tax,' " said Dan Lavey, a public relations executive in Portland. "That about sums it up. It's as much a cultural issue as an economic issue. It's a way of life."

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