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18 Days of Record Gas Prices

San Francisco over $4, Block Island at $4.14

By Joe Benton
ConsumerAffairs.com

May 2, 2008

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The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in San Francisco is now above the $4 level at $4.007 and prices at some filling stations elsewhere around the state are passing through the $4 mark as well.

Throughout California, gas prices are averaging $3.923, forecasting an expensive summer driving season ahead for consumers.

Nevertheless, the national average gasoline price ended 18 consecutive days of climbing to new records slipping by a penny overnight to settle in at $3.622.

That is the first time since April 14 that gasoline prices have declined. Diesel prices also fell slightly to a national average of $4.249 a gallon.

One month ago gasoline averaged $3.287 a gallon and one year ago regular self serve sold for an average price of $2.991.

The least expensive statewide gas price is found in Wyoming at $3.437. Rock Hill, South Carolina, a suburb of Charlotte, North Carolina, may have the lowest gas price at $3.12 per gallon.

Here is a look as some gasoline prices from around the country in the ConsumerAffairs.Com Gas Price Round Up.

California: Gasoline prices hit records in Los Angeles and Orange counties for the fifth consecutive week but the decline of the increases is suggesting prices could fall later this month, the Automobile Club of Southern California said.

The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular unleaded gasoline was $3.902 in Los Angeles County, 4.4 cents more than last week, 29 cents more than last month and 50 cents more than at this time last year.

In Orange County, the average was $3.873, 5.3 cents higher than the record $3.82 set last Friday, 28 cents more than last month and 45.3 cents more than at this time last year.

The Los Angeles County average rose 5.2 cents.

"In four of the past eight years, gas prices have peaked in May and no spring price spike during the past eight years has lasted beyond May," Auto Club spokesman Jeffrey Spring said. "Last year, our prices reached all-time records in Southern California on May 9 and then started to decline."

The highest price in California is found in Goleta, just west of Santa Barbara, at $4.43 per gallon at an ExxonMobil station.

San Francisco has the highest average price in the state at $4.007 per gallon, according to AAA.

Prices across California are running about 50 cents or more higher than at this time last year.

Texas: Consumers across the lone Star state are feeling the pain at the pump.

According to AAA Texas, every region surveyed in the state experienced record high gas prices this week.

The average price in Texas for a gallon of regular self-serve hit $3.53 in the survey. That is 6 cents higher than the previous week.

Texarkana tops the list of gas prices in Texas at $3.53 for a gallon of regular. San Antonio with an average price of $3.49 per gallon is at the bottom of the list. But the average price in San Antonio is up 8 cents from the previous week.

In Austin, the average price for a gallon of gas hit $3.52, up 7.8 cents. The news was worse in Dallas where drivers paid $3.53 cents for a gallon of gas, up just under 5 cents.

Houston drivers paid an average of just under $3.51 per gallon of gas this week, an increase of 4.9 cents per gallon over the previous week.

Maryland: The cost of gasoline continues to rise in Maryland. A gallon of regular reached $3.605, according to AAA.

In Baltimore, a gallon of regular gas is costing drivers $3.588, up 35 cents from one month ago.

The average price for a gallon of diesel in Baltimore is $4.303.

In neighboring Washington, D.C., drivers are paying $3.685 for a gallon of regular gas.

Block Island: Residents of the Rhode Island resort community enjoy beautiful views and the highest gasoline prices in the state.

The price of a gallon of regular unleaded hit $4.14 a gallon at the island's only gas station. A gallon of premium is up to $4.39 per gallon and diesel is up to $4.80 per gallon.

Gasoline is brought onto the island by ferry and so that adds an extra cost.

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