Mar 2, 2021 2 min read

They weren’t as bad, but gasoline prices continued to rise in Western Pennsylvania.

A gallon of unleaded self-serve averages $2.967, a 2.7-cent bump up from a week ago, AAA East Central reported on Monday. That is the eighth regional increase over the past nine weeks, during which the cost has risen 48.9 cents.

This week’s price is 30.5 cents more than it was a year ago.

AAA said this latest increase is due to a winter storm that forced 26 U.S. refineries offline. That shutdown, according to the Energy Information Administration, pushed refinery utilization from an average of about 83% to 68%.

AAA monitors weekly prices in 23 cities and towns across Western Pennsylvania, where the greater Washington area experienced a minuscule jump of less than a half-penny to $2.958. That follows increases totaling 26.9 cents over the previous two weeks.

Gas in and near the city, however, is still a relative bargain, as the average is the sixth-lowest in the region. Washington’s figure has risen 69.1 cents over the past nine weeks.

Greensburg ($2.865) has the region’s cheapest petrol, followed by New Castle ($2.888). Beaver, Bradford and Warren have the most expensive, all at $2.999. A mere 13.4 cents separate the highest and lowest prices.

Uniontown’s average actually dropped, by four-tenths of a cent, to $2.985, tied for 15th lowest regionally.

Pennsylvania’s average increased by 4.8 cents to $2.950. That is 23 cents higher than the U.S. figure, which jumped nine cents to $2.72 – the highest the national average has been since August 2019. The U.S. price has risen 30 cents since the beginning of February.