Gasoline prices have taken flight over the past week.
In its weekly report released today, national gas price tracker GasBuddy.com put the average price of gas in the area at $3.74 a gallon, up 21 cents from the previous week. That's on top of a 6-cent rise the previous week.
GasBuddy data are based on a survey of 720 stations in the area.
The current at-the-pump price is 6.2 cents per gallon higher than a year ago and 26.8 cents higher than last month.
Nationally, GasBuddy said, the average price of gas increased 14.4 cents over the past week to $3.48 a gallon - up 21.1 cents from last month and 4.4 cents higher than a year ago.
Analysts blamed a stew of factors - an improving economy setting off speculators, surging crude oil prices and refineries doing maintenance to gear up for the upcoming production of spring/summer-blend gas.
"Unfortunately for angry motorists, there doesn't seem to be much relief in sight, at least for the time being, as retail prices continue to climb in virtually all areas of the country," said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.
Read more Tuesday in The Sacramento Bee and at Sacbee.com.
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