Californians are once again seeing a sudden surge in the cost of filling up the gas tank.
According to AAA, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded in the Golden State was $4.81 on Monday, 16 cents higher than a week ago, yet relatively unchanged from a month ago and still 28 cents lower than March 31 last year.
The highest prices are found in Mono County, home to Mammoth Mountain Ski Resort, where drivers are paying an average of $5.80 per gallon. Imperial County is the least expensive at $4.50 per gallon.
The coastal counties of Southern California—Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, Ventura, and Santa Barbara—were around $4.80 per gallon on Monday, according to AAA.
California, as is typically the case, has the highest gas prices in the United States. Nationally, the average was $3.17 on Monday.
Drivers in Mississippi are only paying $2.68 per gallon, the lowest in the nation.
“Gas prices typically start going up this time of year and peak during summer,” AAA said. “But the national average is still about 40 cents lower than last year due to tepid gasoline demand and weak crude oil prices.”
Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, says California has its own unique issues, where a single refinery going offline for maintenance can have a significant impact on prices. He warns that higher prices are still ahead.
“We likely will continue to see prices go up another 10 to 25 cents a gallon over the next week or so as supply continues to tighten because of refinery outages and maintenance,” DeHaan told KNX News Radio.