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Whether it’s cutting back on meals, entertainment or visits to a friend, people everywhere are feeling the pain at the pump as gas prices once again escalate.
“It’s too much,” said Judy Jaikin, of Little Falls, who estimated she spends about $50 a week on gas for her Pontiac Grand Am.
For her, the extra dollars at the pump mean cutting back on trips to visit friends.
“They live in Dolgeville, Stratford. ... I can’t afford it,” said Jaikin.
Matthew Reel, of Ilion, also expressed frustration at the prices.
“They keep going up and they’re not going down. It’s kind of bad,” he said while filling up at the Nice N’ Easy in Ilion where regular unleaded gasoline was $3.79 a gallon on Wednesday.
About two months ago, Ilion residents had some relief at the pump when prices were down to $3.19 a gallon shortly after the Fastrac on Central Avenue reopened. Reel said he benefited from those low prices, but now is back up to paying $65 when filling up his Ford Ranger.
“It’s ridiculous,” he said.
One woman also pumping gas in Ilion said she has even cut back on meals and cable because of the rise in gas prices.
Peter Emola, of Long Island, was pumping gas into his car Wednesday at Nice N’ Easy in Herkimer. “It’s way too high,” he said, saying he now spends $80 a week on gas between his two cars.
In the Utica-Rome area, the average price of regular gasoline increased 17 cents in the last 30 days, from $3.68 to Tuesday’s price of $3.85, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report. The current cost is almost 50 cents more than the price last February of $3.39 per gallon, according to the report.
New York’s prices are among the highest in the nation, along with Alaska, California, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont.
Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst at GasBuddy.com, said in a news release Wednesday motorists should be aware of the likelihood of a sharp rise in gasoline prices in the next few days and through the weekend in New York.
“I expect stations to increase prices as much as five to 20 cents per gallon by the conclusion of the weekend with some stations starting to raise prices immediately,” he said.
Ed Welsh, AAA New York Central Region general manager, also said he sees an increase in the near future with the seasonal change from winter to summer fuel blends. He said the prices could easily surpass the area’s highest average price on record of $4.23, which occurred in June 2008.
“Right now, the crystal ball is kind of murky,” Welsh said.
Contributing: Gatehouse News Service
Whether it’s cutting back on meals, entertainment or visits to a friend, people everywhere are feeling the pain at the pump as gas prices once again escalate.
“It’s too much,” said Judy Jaikin, of Little Falls, who estimated she spends about $50 a week on gas for her Pontiac Grand Am.
For her, the extra dollars at the pump mean cutting back on trips to visit friends.
“They live in Dolgeville, Stratford. ... I can’t afford it,” said Jaikin.
Matthew Reel, of Ilion, also expressed frustration at the prices.
“They keep going up and they’re not going down. It’s kind of bad,” he said while filling up at the Nice N’ Easy in Ilion where regular unleaded gasoline was $3.79 a gallon on Wednesday.
About two months ago, Ilion residents had some relief at the pump when prices were down to $3.19 a gallon shortly after the Fastrac on Central Avenue reopened. Reel said he benefited from those low prices, but now is back up to paying $65 when filling up his Ford Ranger.
“It’s ridiculous,” he said.
One woman also pumping gas in Ilion said she has even cut back on meals and cable because of the rise in gas prices.
Peter Emola, of Long Island, was pumping gas into his car Wednesday at Nice N’ Easy in Herkimer. “It’s way too high,” he said, saying he now spends $80 a week on gas between his two cars.
In the Utica-Rome area, the average price of regular gasoline increased 17 cents in the last 30 days, from $3.68 to Tuesday’s price of $3.85, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report. The current cost is almost 50 cents more than the price last February of $3.39 per gallon, according to the report.
New York’s prices are among the highest in the nation, along with Alaska, California, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont.
Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst at GasBuddy.com, said in a news release Wednesday motorists should be aware of the likelihood of a sharp rise in gasoline prices in the next few days and through the weekend in New York.
“I expect stations to increase prices as much as five to 20 cents per gallon by the conclusion of the weekend with some stations starting to raise prices immediately,” he said.
Ed Welsh, AAA New York Central Region general manager, also said he sees an increase in the near future with the seasonal change from winter to summer fuel blends. He said the prices could easily surpass the area’s highest average price on record of $4.23, which occurred in June 2008.
“Right now, the crystal ball is kind of murky,” Welsh said.
Contributing: Gatehouse News Service
