Gas prices are on the rise as we kick off a new year. The national average price for regular unleaded gasoline is now $2.34 per gallon, up five cents from last week and up 35 cents from one year ago. The New York State average is $2.52 per gallon, up five cents from last week. A year ago, the NYS average was $2.23.
Locally, gas prices went up four cents in Buffalo to $2.44. In Rochester, the cost went up five cents to $2.46, according to AAA of Western and Central New York.
New York State’s gas tax actually went down by 0.8 cents on New Year’s Day, but that reduction is dwarfed by rising gas prices across the state.
Last week, the national average price for a gallon of unleaded topped $2.30 for the first time in 200 days. It’s now at $2.34. It’s been nearly 500 days since the national average topped $2.40 per gallon according to Oil Price Information Service (OPIS).
For all of 2016, the annual national average price for a gallon of unleaded was $2.12 – that’s 27 cents lower than 2015. OPIS says motorists should expect a moderate spike in 2017.
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