The price of gasoline has finally stopped climbing locally, as well as across the country.
According to AAA of Western and Central New York, the price of a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in both Buffalo and Rochester is down a penny this week, to $2.75 and $2.76 respectively.
That’s below the state average of $2.81 (down 2 cents from a week ago) but above the national average of $2.62 (which is down 5 cents from a week ago).
After the devastation caused by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma shut out a quarter of the U.S. refining capacity and contributed to a tightening of gasoline supplies, gas prices have begun to slide downward. As restoration and recovery efforts continue, the decline in the national average can be attributed to more refineries returning to pre-storm efforts and ongoing efforts to increase availability of fuel through barge shipments and loosened regulations on gasoline.
The southeastern U.S.’s gasoline supplies were constrained by Hurricane Irma’s impact fuel delivery systems – particularly in Florida. However, the situation appears to have stabilized, as Florida’s state average for unleaded gasoline has held steady at $2.72 for most of the week. Prices are likely to remain high in the coming weeks, but drivers in the state and around the country should start see prices decrease as the fall driving season kicks off.
