Some gas stations charge as much as $1.50 for air. ... If a gas station owner insists that you have to pay for air even after you’ve used the pump, stand your ground.

Motorists are complaining they can’t always find air for their tires at gas stations, but stations do not have to provide free air and water for nonpaying customers.

The "vapor recovery" nozzles have been used in the region since the early 1990s to reduce the air pollution caused when fuel vapors escape from the pumps and contribute to smog.