Sacramento gas prices creep to $4 a gallon — East Coast pipeline cyberattack isn’t reason
Gas prices are on the rise, and costs around Sacramento have crept up to $4 a gallon.
The average price for a gallon of regular-grade gasoline in the area was exactly $4, according to a Monday survey of 720 local gas stations by fuel trend analysis website GasBuddy.com, with prices ranging from about $3.50 to $4.70 a gallon.
The local average is up 2.5 cents a gallon in the last week and 17.5 cents in the past month, according to GasBuddy. The national average has risen 10 cents in the past month, and stood at $2.95 a gallon Monday. California gas prices are typically the highest in the nation.
Prices are rising as the U.S. and local economy continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Costs plummeted last spring, as the global crisis simultaneously brought an economic recession and led to a sharp reduction in commute as well as leisure travel.
On the same date last year, about two months into California’s stay-at-home order, gas in Sacramento averaged about $2.57 a gallon, according to GasBuddy. The same date in 2019, it was $4.01.
On the other side of the country, a cyberattack has besieged major lines operated by Colonial Pipeline in the Southeastern U.S. since late last week.
Automobile company AAA also said in a news release Monday that prices are forecast to climb this week “in reaction to the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, which delivers approximately 45% of all fuel to the East Coast.”
However, the impact is expected to vary regionally. Unless it takes longer than a few days for the pipeline to come back online, significant price impacts are not anticipated for California or other West Coast states, according to both AAA and GasBuddy analysts.
