Will Gas Prices Reach $4 per Gallon Soon?

As Riverside gas prices continue to climb, it begs the question, will gas prices reach $4 per gallon soon?

Riverside gas prices have risen 6.2 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $3.80/g today, according to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 481 stations in Riverside. Gas prices in Riverside are 35.3 cents per gallon higher than a month ago and stand 50.0 cents per gallon higher than a year ago. So, will gas prices reach $4 per gallon soon?

According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Riverside is priced at $3.31/g today while the most expensive is $4.49/g, a difference of $1.18/g. The lowest price in the state today is $3.09/g while the highest is $5.79/g, a difference of $2.70/g.

The national average price of gasoline has risen 5.9 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $2.86/g today. The national average is up 33.2 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands 64.0 cents per gallon higher than a year ago.

Historical gasoline prices in Riverside and the national average going back ten years:

• March 15, 2020: $3.30/g (U.S. Average: $2.22/g)
• March 15, 2019: $3.28/g (U.S. Average: $2.54/g)
• March 15, 2018: $3.37/g (U.S. Average: $2.52/g)
• March 15, 2017: $2.99/g (U.S. Average: $2.28/g)
• March 15, 2016: $2.66/g (U.S. Average: $1.94/g)
• March 15, 2015: $3.41/g (U.S. Average: $2.43/g)
• March 15, 2014: $3.97/g (U.S. Average: $3.52/g)
• March 15, 2013: $4.17/g (U.S. Average: $3.69/g)
• March 15, 2012: $4.37/g (U.S. Average: $3.82/g)
• March 15, 2011: $3.93/g (U.S. Average: $3.56/g)

Neighboring areas and their current gas prices:

• San Bernardino- $3.78/g, up 8.3 cents per gallon from last week’s $3.70/g.
• Orange County- $3.87/g, up 5.6 cents per gallon from last week’s $3.81/g.
• Los Angeles- $3.87/g, up 6.0 cents per gallon from last week’s $3.81/g.

“As Americans turn optimistic on COVID-19 pandemic recovery, we’ve been seeing insatiable demand for gasoline, which continues to recover far faster than oil production. According to GasBuddy data, last week’s gasoline demand was just 1% below the pre-pandemic level, an extremely bullish factor likely to continue driving gas and oil prices up in the short term,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. “The recovery in the last few weeks has been astounding- both the speed and overall volume increases we’ve seen in our data lend credibility to the recovery, and perhaps will lead to continued price increases due to the continued imbalance between supply and demand. It’s no longer a question of if we’ll see gasoline demand return to near normal this year but when, and will oil producers rise to the occasion and be able to quickly ramp up output, or are we going to see the highest summer prices since 2014 until they jump into action? Only time will tell, but it’s looking like things are heating up far more than expected since the start of the year.”