"I wish I could get more of a political answer," said Sherwin, pumping gas at a Salt Lake City Costco into her 1997 Toyota 4Runner.

So would the vast majority of voters in Utah and six other Western states, where a new survey reveals overwhelming support for policies requiring more efficient vehicles, cleaner fuels and reductions in greenhouse-gas emissions.

The Union of Concerned Scientists on Tuesday released a poll of 2,003 voters in Arizona, California, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Washington that shows 91 percent of Western voters say it's critical to end U.S. dependence on oil. Another 88 percent want states to require automakers to crank out more cars and trucks that run on less gas with less pollution.

A strong majority - 84 percent - of voters say cars, trucks and other vehicles should be forced to reduce their greenhouse-gas pollution, as should power plants and factories. Oil companies should make cleaner fuels, say 81 percent of respondents.

The Union of Concerned Scientists, founded 39 years ago, is a nonprofit conservation organization based in Cambridge, Mass., with offices in Berkeley, Calif., Chicago and Washington, D.C. The group released the study at the Western Climate Initiative meeting in San Diego.

Patricia Monahan, deputy director for the organization's clean-vehicles program, said some respondents report that soaring gas prices haven't affected them.

"Either they don't rely on their cars or they make enough money," Monahan said. "They don't feel the pain. But that's not most people."

Instead, 76 percent of the respondents planning to buy a car or light truck would consider an alternative-fuel vehicle, a hybrid or a high-mileage car.

Retiree Michael Noble, filling his 2002 GMC Envoy in Salt Lake City, said his rig gets only 15 miles per gallon in town. But when he penciled out the cost of buying a new car versus continuing to fuel the Envoy, he decided he is better off with what he has.

As for broad solutions to gas prices, Noble said he backs alternative sources of energy such as wind power. "I also support drilling in Alaska and offshore," he said.

To Jarod Hale, gas is a necessity, so he just pays for it. He hasn't calculated his 1998 Toyota RAV4's fuel economy, but said it costs $45 to fill his tank.

The West Jordan resident and Discover Card employee said he doesn't worry about cutting back on other purchases. "If I have to look at the price, I don't need it," he said. At the same time, he uses gas rewards as an incentive to sign up new Discover customers, some of whom say they pay $80 for a tank of gas.

Monahan said the biggest surprise in the survey was the nearly unanimous support for changed policies. "There was so much harmony," she said. "There wasn't much difference between the seven states."

Nearly 60 percent of the respondents say higher gas costs had caused hardship, and 83 percent predict those prices will keep climbing unless fuel economy improves. Even if the prices soon drop, 95 percent say "immediate action" is necessary to avoid a future crisis.

Sugar House resident Alisha Galvan, stopping at a neighborhood Tesoro station to fuel her 2002 Chevy Monte Carlo, said she puts $10 worth in her tank, only to see it used up in a round trip to Taylorsville.

Galvan said her job requires her to drive between Ogden and Provo. She doesn't get mileage reimbursement, so she absorbs the skyrocketing costs. That has meant cutting back on family outings.

"I've got a 3-year-old," Galvan said. "We struggle."

She blames politicians for her difficulties.

"Go to the president," she said. "I think he has a lot to do with it."

phenetz@sltrib.com

* More on the Web:

For the full study, go to www.ucsusa.org