Filling up you car may be draining your wallet.
The average price for a gallon of gas across metro Atlanta has climbed 17 cents in the past week, and Monday’s price was a whopping 41 cents more than just one month ago, according to a website that tracks fuel costs. That 41-cent increase represents more than $8 on a 20-gallon fillup.
A spokeswoman for the American Automobile Association said Monday that motorists can expect to see those prices continuing to climb for several more weeks.
Atlanta’s average price for a gallon of regular unleaded early Monday was $3.69, atlantagasprices.com reported. That’s a half-cent higher than the national average, and 16 cents higher than a year ago, the website said.
While gas was selling for considerably less in some parts of metro Atlanta, multiple stations in Midtown and Buckhead were charging $3.99 early Monday.
One of those stations was the Shell at 14th and Spring streets, where Andrea Henderson was buying gas.
“You expect high gas prices in the summer, but not in February,” Henderson told the Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Greg Slater, who was visiting from Chicago, said he wasn’t fazed by Atlanta’s high gas prices. “It’s the same up in Chicago,” he said.
Jessica Brady, a spokeswoman for AAA, said multiple factors have converged to cause the recent run-up in gas prices.
Brady said pump prices typically increase this time of the year as refineries shut down for maintenance and to switch over to production of a summer blend of gas.
“However, a severe snowstorm in the Northeast, continued concerns over Iran’s nuclear efforts and economic news have caused prices to move higher than initially forecast for this time of the year,” Brady said. “Motorists can expect gas prices to rise throughout March and into April.”
Henderson and Slater would have found gas more than a half-dollar cheaper per gallon Monday at some metro stations.
Atlantagasprices.com reported early Monday that gas was still just under $3.50 at a few stations in Morrow, College Park, Canton, Buford and Cartersville. One station, a Chevron on Veterans Memorial Highway in Mableton, had gas priced at $3.24 a gallon, according to the website.
Staff photographer John Spink contributed to this article.
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