California Hits New Gasoline Price Record

California hit a new average regular gasoline price record today, according to the AAA.

The organization’s gas prices website shows that the average price of the commodity in California came in at $5.88 per gallon on March 24, which is a new all time high, the AAA highlighted.

County retail prices fluctuated at between $5.50 per gallon and $6.63 per gallon, a map on the AAA site showed. The top three most expensive counties for regular gasoline in the state were Mono, at $6.63 per gallon, San Luis Obispo, at $6.05 per gallon, and Inyo, at $6.04 per gallon, the AAA’s map outlined.

Yesterday’s average price for regular gasoline in the state was $5.87 per gallon, the week ago average was $5.78 per gallon, and the month ago average was $4.77 per gallon, according to the AAA. The year ago average was shown to have come in at $3.88 per gallon.

The U.S. average regular gasoline price was $4.23 per gallon as of March 24, according to the AAA. Yesterday’s average was said to have come in at $4.23 per gallon, the week ago average was said to have come in at $4.28 per gallon, and the month ago average was said to have come in at $3.54 per gallon. The year ago average was $2.87 per gallon, the site highlighted.

When asked why California’s regular gasoline price is so high, AAA spokesperson Devin Gladden told Rigzone that regular gas is more expensive in California than other states for two main reasons.

“High state gas tax and special formulated gasoline (more expensive for refiners to produce),” Gladden said.

“Also, at this moment, the California market is dealing with a few refinery issues and ongoing industry challenge with shortage of gasoline tanker drivers – all of those factors combined have helped to push California’s pump prices to some of the highest in the nation,” Gladded added.

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