CLEVELAND: Ohio motorists are getting a sinking feeling as they pull up to the pumps this week. Gas prices are way up and now are hovering around $4 a gallon.
Rising oil prices amid fears about refinery problems in the Great Lakes have pushed pump prices up over the dreaded $4 mark at some stations across the state.
According to auto club AAA, the state average for a gallon of regular gas was $3.93 on Thursday, an increase of 9 cents from Wednesday and 27 cents higher than a week ago. Meanwhile, the national average Thursday was $3.63.
Prices tend to be higher in the summer anyway because of increased demand and the switch to less-expensive winter-blend gas.
Now there are other factors at work, too.
An analyst said the supply of gasoline has been unstable in the Great Lakes region, where two large refineries are either partly or fully shut down for maintenance.