Gas Prices On The Rise Again
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- It's not the news you want to hear at holiday time, but gas prices are on a late season rise. Tim Williams has more on what you can expect at the pump as you make your year-end travel plans.
It may not be the Grinch, but gas prices are stealing Christmas one penny at a time.
"I thought in the winter they'd go back down, but they seem to keep climbing up," said George from Reisterstown.
"Gas prices tend to peak in the summer season when more motorists take to the road and they start to decline as we head into fall and winter. This is very unusual to see prices this high in December," said Christine Delise, AAA.
Typically after Labor Day and especially well into November and December, pump prices drop with customer demand. This year, prices have jumped about eight cents in the past week because of supply and demand. That's up 35 cents from this time last year.
"While rising gas prices may impact holiday travelers' budgets, we do not anticipate travelers canceling their Christmas/New Year's holiday plans due to these rising prices," Delise said.
Still, it's bad timing for holiday drivers.
"We're driving up to visit my family in Boston so what we do is we have to find the cheapest gas on the way up and we fill up on the way back," George said.
"I'm driving back to see family in North Carolina and I'm not looking forward to paying at the pump," said Elizabeth Scott.
It's guaranteed that real peace of mind will not come at the pumps this holiday season with prices now at $3 a gallon and heading up.
As of Friday, the national average for regular unleaded was $2.98 a gallon.
