Drivers continue to feel the pressure of soaring gas prices, both nationally and here in Santa Barbara, where the average price per gallon has increased steadily to $6.26, according to a GasBuddy survey of 56 local gas stations.
The nationwide average cracked $5 for the first time in history, and over the weekend in Santa Barbara, gas prices ranged from the cheapest at $5.97 to the most expensive at $6.79 — a difference of 82 cents per gallon. Across California, prices ranged from as low as $5.30 to as much as $9.63.
“For the first time ever, last week saw the national average reach the $5 per gallon mark, as nearly every one of the nation’s 50 states saw prices jump,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. He said that the current upward momentum may slow down, but that prices are still ”just one potential supply jolt away” from heading even higher.
“Gasoline demand, while rising seasonally, is still well below previous records but remains impressive with prices in all states at record levels,” De Haan said. “Should the rise in price finally start to slow demand, we could see some breathing room, but for now, it seems like Americans are proving resilient to record highs.”
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As of June 13, the local average of $6.26 per gallon is 11.5 cents more than last week, 43.2 cents higher than one month ago, and $2.11 higher than the average in June of 2021.
Santa Barbara is well above the nationwide average of $5.01, but it sits just below the averages of three neighboring cities: Bakersfield ($6.33, up 14.4 cents from last week), Los Angeles ($6.42, up 10.2 cents from last week), and Ventura ($6.41, up 9.3 cents from last week).
GasBuddy also released historical averages, including the prices for June 13 over the past decade. The 10-year trends show that Santa Barbara averaged $4.13 per gallon in 2012, which dropped steadily until 2016, when the city averaged a low of $2.91 per gallon. Since that year, the city average has slowly crept up every year, with 2022 being the most expensive year to date.
The website shows a daily list of the cheapest stations in the city, using data compiled from more than 11 million weekly price reports from more than 150,000 gas stations across the country.
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