Chattanooga gas prices rise to highest level since 2014

Survey says higher prices may limit summertime travel, but AAA still forecasts higher holiday traffic ahead

Gas prices tile
Gas prices tile

Chattanooga gas prices rose last week to the highest level in nearly four years as a new survey suggests that the higher prices at the pump may put a crimp in travel plans this summer with more Americans planning "staycations" instead of hitting the road.

The average price of gas in Chattanooga increased by 5.9 cents per gallon in the past week to $2.59 a gallon - the highest price since the fall of 2014, according to GasBuddy's daily survey of 170 gas outlets in Chattanooga. Although local prices at the pump have jumped nearly 58 cents a gallon from a year ago, Chattanooga gas prices are still 33 cents per gallon below the U.S. average of $2.92 per gallon, Gasbuddy.com said.

A separate survey by AAA found Chattanooga has the cheapest average prices for gas in Tennessee.

"With refineries now well positioned for the summer months, we may see some relief in mid-June, but expect this summer to remain the priciest since 2014 with a strong likelihood of the national average hitting the psychological $3 per gallon barrier sometime this summer should we see any unexpected outages or geopolitical tensions flare," said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

A new survey released Monday by GasBuddy.com found that only 58 percent of those polled said they will take a road trip this summer, a 24 percent decrease from last year. Among respondents sampled, 39 percent cited high gas prices for impacting their summer travel decisions, compared to 19 percent in 2017.

"For all those that have said summer travel will be unaffected, we offer thousands of respondents who have strongly indicated that's not true, especially as gas prices continue to climb," DeHaan said. "For the first time in years, the annual GasBuddy Summer Travel Survey revealed that higher prices are hurting the tradition of the summer road trip as we near a national average of $3 per gallon."

AAA forecasts that gas prices are likely to rise further this week before the busy Memorial Day weekend, which kicks off the unofficial start of summer. But AAA doesn't expect any big drop in travel this year.

"Current fundamentals will likely lead gas prices even higher before the Memorial Day weekend," said Mark Jenkins, spokesman, AAA - The Auto Club Group. "Regardless of higher prices at the pump, AAA still forecasts the most holiday road trippers in more than a dozen years. Those with smaller gasoline budgets will find other ways to finance their travel plans, like cutting back on discretionary expenses like shopping or dining out."

Contact Dave Flessner at dflessner@timesfreepress.com or at 757-6340.

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