For about the cost of a 20-ounce bottle of soda you can transport a barrel (42 gallons) of petroleum products via pipeline from Houston to the New York harbor.

While the soda may be a good thirst quencher, for only $1.05 per barrel, pipelines are able to move crude oil and petroleum products across country that America depends on every day. The best part for the consumer is that this cost for transportation of petroleum products, such as gasoline, is not determined or tied to the price of crude oil on the world market.

Common medicines such as aspirin and antihistamines are made with synthesized compounds that come from the oil refining process. Oil by-products are also used in fertilizer and help increase crop production.  Combine these typical uses with the fact that 97 percent of America’s transportation energy comes from petroleum, and pipelines transport two-thirds of the petroleum. The importance of pipelines is clear.

The 200,000-mile pipeline network transports crude from oil fields and coastal shipping terminals to refineries.  Once the oil is processed, pipelines continue to move the refined products – gasoline, jet fuel, heating oil, and diesel – to distribution centers.  From the distribution centers, trucks deliver the refined products to their final destinations.

Despite the increasingly complex nature of the oil pipeline industry, the costs of shipping crude oil and products remain relatively low.  Pipeline charges account for only a small portion of the total consumer cost of petroleum. For instance, at the local gasoline station, the shipping cost is only about three cents per gallon.

Technological improvements have helped keep costs low and stable.  Highly automated systems aid in the efficient transportation of petroleum through pipelines. New monitoring and inspection technology has helped reduce the number and volume of pipeline spills, making pipelines the safest onshore oil transportation mode in America.

Highly trained pipeline operators help to keep costs low and make customers satisfied.  Many work in central control centers to operate and monitor rates of flow, pressures and fluid characteristics.  Fluctuations can be detected quickly, alerting operators to potential leaks.

If a problem arises, operators can safely shut down and dispatch crews to investigate the affected portion of the pipeline. Their efficient work allows oil pipelines to transport 17 percent of all U.S. freight, but only account for two percent of the nation’s freight bill.

Often seen as one of the unsung heroes among the many utilities, pipelines play an important role in the economy by transporting product safely, efficiently and at a low cost.