JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Gasoline prices have surged to a four-year high, pushing the nationwide average for a gallon of regular to $4.28, AAA said.
The statewide average increased by about 34 cents per gallon in the past week, AAA said, and is roughly $1.40 higher since the conflict with Iran began. AAA noted the nationwide average on Feb. 26 — before U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran — was about $2.98 per gallon.
“Drivers are feeling the pain at the pump,” said Mark Jenkins of AAA, who attributed the rise largely to a 58% jump in crude oil prices. Jenkins said prices likely will not fall until the Strait of Hormuz is fully reopened.
Drivers in Jacksonville voiced frustration.
“It’s expensive. I just don’t know what to say,” one motorist said. Another said she goes to Sam’s in hopes of a cheaper price and called the current costs “astronomically crazy.”
A third driver urged perspective, saying current prices aren’t as severe as when the strait was shut and lines wrapped around parking lots.
Locally, AAA reported Flagler County had some of the highest prices, at about $4.36 per gallon. The lowest price among the Florida counties surveyed was about $4.27 in Bradford County. In Georgia, the cheapest reported fill-up was about $3.65 and the most expensive about $3.73; all Georgia counties surveyed were under an average of $3.80.
AAA’s latest figures reflect national and regional price monitoring; drivers say rising costs are adding roughly $20 to the cost of a full tank.