The average price for a gallon of gas in Pennsylvania has jumped 16% since the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran Feb. 28., disrupting the transport of oil from the region.
Oil prices soared as high as nearly $120 a barrel late Sunday before falling closer to $85 by Wednesday after President Donald Trump suggested that the war in Iran would be a “short-term excursion.” But the fluctuating price of oil hasn’t stopped gas prices from surging in the commonwealth and across the country.
Pennsylvanians are paying an average of 10% more for a gallon of gas than they were a week ago, and about 16% more than before the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran Feb. 28.
As of Wednesday, the average price for a gallon in Pennsylvania is $3.66, up from $3.30 this time last week, and $3.12 two weeks ago, according to auto club AAA.
Nationally, the average price for a gallon is $3.57, up nearly 12% from $3.19 a week ago, according to AAA.
Pennsylvania’s highest gas prices are in Warren County, where the average price is $3.79 a gallon. Montour County has the lowest average cost, at $3.44 a gallon.
Here’s a breakdown of the current average gas cost per gallon in Pennsylvania’s top 10 metro areas, with the average cost per gallon this time last week in parentheses:
- Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton: $3.61 ($3.26)
- East Stroudsburg: $3.57 ($3.12)
- Erie: $3.76 ($3.45)
- Harrisburg-Carlisle: $3.66 ($3.28)
- Lancaster: $3.67 ($3.28)
- Philadelphia: $3.60 ($3.18)
- Pittsburgh: $3.75 ($3.42)
- Reading: $3.72 ($3.31)
- Scranton-Wilkes-Barre: $3.54 ($3.18)
- York-Hanover: $3.71 ($3.32)
How is the war impacting gas prices?
The spiking gas prices are a result of Iran’s decision to close the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial Middle Eastern export route that carries 20% of global oil flows, after the US and Israeli attacks.
More than 3,000 ships use the strait every month. Most of them transport crude oil, refined petroleum, and liquid natural gas.
Concerns about how long disruptions could last for the production and transport of oil and natural gas in the region, and the possibility of even more, are what’s driving the higher prices.
How Pennsylvania lawmakers are trying to ease pain at the pump
Democratic state Reps. Joe Ciresi (Montgomery) and Jim Haddock (Lackawanna/Luzerne) are calling on the Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday’s office to investigate gas price gouging, alleging that gas prices started rising in Pennsylvania “as soon as the first bomb struck in Iran,” even though gas flowing at the pumps then had already been paid for.
Democratic state Sen. Lisa Boscola (Lehigh/Northampton) has introduced a proposal for a 60-day suspension on the state’s gas tax of 57.6 cents per gallon, the fourth highest gas tax in the country behind only California, Washington, and Illinois.
What Pennsylvanians are saying about rising gas prices
Kathryn Price Engelhard, 70, gassed up her Subaru Forester at a Wawa in Morrisville, Bucks County Monday. A retired nonprofit executive director and “strong Democrat,” she said she had to stop at over a half a tank because she’s on a fixed income. Last week, she paid only $30 to top herself off.
Similarly, she cut her order for home heating oil by half because that cost is up, too. “I look at the prices of oil in the past and the stupid war, how did we—how did anybody— think that that was not going to impact oil?” she asked. “Of course it’s impacting oil.”
Elsewhere in Bucks County, Vivian Knight, 53, is hoping her fill-up last week will last her a month. She is a former exterminator out on disability. “If I had to go to work or something like that, gas prices would be ridiculous,” she said.
How to find the cheapest gas prices
Whether you’re traveling or at home, the website GasBuddy offers information to find the cheapest prices for gasoline.
Enter your state, city, or ZIP code to find the cheapest fuel prices in the area.
Information from the Associated Press and USA Today via Reuters Connect was used in this report.
