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Prices At The Pump Continue To Surge

By Molly Daly

PHILADELPHIA (CBS)  --  A lot of drivers are suffering from sticker shock, as the price at the gasoline pump continues to spike.

At these prices, buying gas is like filling your tank with tall lattes.

AAA's Jana Tidwell says,"today's average $3.75 in the Philly region is ten cents higher than it was a week ago, and almost 20 cents higher than a month ago."

Tidwell says several factors are driving the prices up.

They include unrest in Egypt, a large drop in crude oil inventories because of increased demand, and unscheduled refinery outages.

This means a few have gone offline because something needed fixing.

Tidwell says, prices aren't headed down, at least not yet.

"Prices are definitely going to continue to rise short-term as we approach August, but we're definitely looking at a decrease as demand decreases post-Labor Day."

But that's when hurricane season heats up, and Tidwell says, that can affect the price of gas.

"Any threat of a hurricane, any threat of disruption in crude oil refining, especially in the Gulf of Mexico, or anything close to what we saw last fall with Sandy, we'll definitely see gas prices and crude oil increase if we are threatened with a hurricane," Tidwell said.

In the meantime, if you want to get the most out of a gallon of gas, Tidwell suggests you consolidate your errands, "and get the junk out of the trunk, all the things we carry in the trunk of a car. The heavier a car is, the more gas it burns."

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