Local gas prices continue to decline, other areas on the rise
CAPITAL REGION, N.Y. (NEWS10) - The average cost to fill up in the Albany area decreased again this past week. According to GasBuddy, the Capital Region saw prices fall over a dime. But while relief at the pump continues locally, other parts of the country have seen sudden increases again. Data released Monday from GasBuddy [...]
CAPITAL REGION, N.Y. (NEWS10) - The average cost to fill up in the Albany area decreased again this past week. According to GasBuddy, the Capital Region saw prices fall over a dime. But while relief at the pump continues locally, other parts of the country have seen sudden increases again.
Data released Monday from GasBuddy shows an average gallon gas is 11.5¢ less than last week, now averaging around $3.68. While prices are falling, some drivers are still frustrated.
"Still pretty high up," said Eric Gaud, who's changed his driving habits with prices still well over $3, "I walk most places, I don’t drive as far as I used to. It’s $100 for my car to pay for gas."
Others have a different mentality, "I love driving, so it doesn’t matter," said Thomas Brownall, recalling when gas was a quarter per gallon when he first got behind the wheel, "You could fill the tank for $2.50 for a sports car, and it went up and it went up, and so did my pay."
But while prices continue declining in the Albany area, it's a much different story in other parts of the country. In the last week, states across the West Coast, Rocky Mountains and Midwest have seen prices suddenly balloon again.
In Wisconsin, for instance, prices have spiked over 32¢ in the past week, that according to data from GasBuddy.
In part, Patrick De Haan, Head of Petroleum Analysis for GasBuddy, said, "A slew of unexpected refinery disruptions, including fires and routine maintenance, have seemingly all happened in a short span of time," saying this is the reasoning behind the recent spike.
But local economic experts are hopeful those trends further west will not have an impact on drivers here in the Capital Region.
"The whole United States is divided into five different petroleum administrative districts," said Kajal Lahiri, Distinguished Professor of Economics at UAlbany.
Lahiri is hopeful the lessened demand for gas caused by high prices and other economic concerns should keep prices low. But, if Hurricane Ian strikes refineries in the Gulf, the volatility of prices could be exacerbated, "If that gets hit, that’s really bad news, particularly the northeast. Those pipelines come all the way to New York."