Drivers to pay 6 percent more for gas this summer
FILE - This Feb. 23, 2012, file shows gasoline dripping from a nozzle at gas station, in Lake Oswego, Ore. Oregon's average gasoline price has hit $4. Retail gasoline prices in the U.S. are now averaging $3.846 per gallon, according to auto club AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. A gallon of regular is the highest ever for this time of year. The national average has risen by 57 cents per gallon since January. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)
NEW YORK >> U.S. drivers will pay an average of 24 cents more per gallon for gasoline during this summer’s travel season, the government says.
The Energy Information Administration says gasoline will cost an average of $3.95 per gallon from April through September, an increase of 6.3 percent from the same period last year. The peak monthly average should be $4.01 in May.
The government says there’s a small chance the price for a gallon could climb as high as $4.50 in June.
Costs are rising with the price of crude oil, the main component in gasoline and other fuels.
Americans have responded to high prices by using less gasoline. But because gas has risen so quickly, they’re still expected to spend $250 more on average per household for gas this year.
Gas prices in Hawaii, already the highest in the nation, set another record today, according to the Daily AAA Fuel Gauge report.
AAA estimates the average price of a gallon of regular gas in Hawaii at $4.614. The price is about 7/10ths of a cent more than yesterday and about 25 cents higher than last month.
