Gas prices rising

The average price of a gallon of gas is up nearly twenty cents.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Gas prices have been on the rise and it's disappointing for many-- especially after the sharp decline in prices just a few months ago.

In Jacksonville, costs have only gone up a few cents in the past months but nationwide, the average price of a gallon of gas is up nearly twenty cents.
It's all because of supply and demand. News4Jax's Elizabeth Campbell spoke to drivers who say they keep an eye on gas prices every day and that it truly affects their budget and lifestyle.

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"Fortunately, I don't have a long commute. I just go downtown to Riverside but, it would be a lot worse if I had to go further," said Amy Knights, adding that it seems everything is more expensive these days, including gas prices. "That's a lot of the reason I chose to live where I do now, because it's close to work and central to a lot of places."

The national average price of a gallon of regular unleaded gas is around $2.60. A week ago it was at $2.49 and a month ago it was about $2.43 a gallon.

Titus Pittman with Genesis Financial Partners says it's all because of supply and demand. "The first part of each year, you have maintenance on refineries. This is what takes the producing of the gas we have into the markets. These refineries are on maintenance which is actually driving up the price because there's a lack of demand at this point." Pittman says not to be panicked or alarmed -- that prices seem pretty standard at this point.

"This normally happens when we've dropped so much since last year, so when we see it back past $2.50, maybe we should be alarmed but we shouldn't see it past that in the next couple months," said Pittman.

He says he expects prices to go down this summer. Drivers like Sandra Thompson are hoping so because she says it impacts her everyday life--"It does affect my income plus it makes me think about what I do and where I go and I don't drive as much as I have in the past."

With kids getting out of school for the summer soon, Pittman says if you're car doesn't get the best gas mileage, rent a car that does and that uses regular gas so you can pay the cheapest amount.