PITTSBURGH — Gas prices in Western Pennsylvania are six cents higher this week at $3.159 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.
The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in Bradford is $3.137; Brookville, $3.202; DuBois, $3.186; Erie, $3.183; and in Warren, $3.103.
The national gas price average is the most expensive in six years at $3.04. Gas prices were expected to flirt with $3/gallon leading up to Memorial Day weekend, but last week’s shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline caused prices to spike weeks ahead of the holiday.
On the week, the national average jumped eight cents. States like Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, where the gasoline supply was strained due to the pipeline shutdown, saw prices jump as much as 21 cents in matter of days. With the pipeline back in operation and supply being restored, gas prices in these states and the national average have stabilized since the end of last week.
AAA forecasts 34 million Americans to take a road trip 50 miles or more from home from May 27 to May 31 to celebrate the unofficial kickoff to summer. That is a 52% increase compared to last summer, but nearly 9% below pre-pandemic levels in 2019. Regardless, motorists will be met with the most expensive gas prices since 2014.
