ATLANTA — Gas prices nationwide have been inching up for the past month, while fuel experts predict a sharper rise beginning after Valentine's Day.
The average price of regular unleaded in metro Atlanta is $3.08 a gallon, a 5¢ jump over the day before. Valentine's Day typically signals the approach of rising prices.
“During an average year, gas prices jump between 35 to 85¢ between Valentine’s Day and Memorial Day weekend,” said GasBuddy’s Patrick DeHann. “So, we’re in store for quite a jump that could happen very soon.
Problems at several of the major refineries, along with an increase in the price of crude oil, are behind the most recent bump that has added about 13¢ a gallon to the price of regular unleaded in Georgia over the past month.
Soon, refineries will reduce production for maintenance work as they prepare to start producing the more expensive summer gas blend.
Disruptions to the fuel supply can impact how quickly prices climb.
“It’s kind of like hopping on a country road,” DeHann said. “Sometimes it might be smooth and you might get to your destination without any potholes, but sometimes there could be some bumps in the road.”
It’s been well over a year since metro Atlanta has seen the average price of gas at over 4 dollars a gallon. DeHaan believes we’ll likely stay below four dollars a gallon this year if oil refineries can avoid major disruptions.