Gas prices in Cincinnati and the nation remain high as the upcoming holiday weekend inches closer and closer, but experts say payment at the pump could stabilize soon.
In the Queen City, the average price per gallon of regular unleaded gas is $2.888 as of Tuesday afternoon, according to auto association AAA. That's up from $2.803 on May 11 and $2.720 on April 11. A far cry from where gas was a year ago — $1.862 on May 18, 2020.
Cincinnati isn't alone in feeling the pain at the pump, as prices throughout Ohio are increasing, too. In Cleveland, regular unleaded gas is $2.874, and in Columbus, it's $2.881. As a state, Ohio is averaging $2.878 per gallon. That's still under the national average of $3.043, the most expensive it's been in six years, AAA says. Still, Ohio is continuing its pattern of increases from recent weeks and months.
The highest recorded average in Ohio was $4.159 per gallon of regular unleaded gas on May 4, 2011, AAA says.
AAA says that the price increase is partially due to fallout from the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, the largest fuel pipeline in the nation. The pipeline, which fuels much of the East Coast, was hit by a cyberattack earlier in May, forcing some systems to shut down. The pipeline has been restarting operations incrementally, though it hit a snag Tuesday when Colonial's scheduling network went offline.
Southeastern states like Georgia and North Carolina have been hit hardest by the shutdown of the 5,500-mile pipeline, AAA says, with gas prices jumping as much as 21 cents as motorists rushed to fill their tanks and supplies dwindled. Stability is coming, though, as the Colonial Pipeline continues to amp up operations and stations throughout the South are restocked.
While Colonial supplies much of the East Coast and Gulf states, Ohio gets its fuel from other refineries, Patrick DeHaan of GasBuddy told WKYC-TV in Cleveland last week. The Colonial fallout in the Buckeye State has been minimal; instead, the gradual ease of COVID-19 restrictions and vaccinated employees' returning to the workplace outpaced the current supply, DeHaan said.
"Compared to last year when prices were only $1.85, this seems like sticker shock. But if it wasn't for last year and COVID, this is kind of right where you would expect us to be," DeHaan told WKYC.
Still, given the fluctuating gas prices and the continuing pandemic, you may want to keep your Memorial Day Weekend trips a little closer to home. From AAA:
AAA forecasts 34 million Americans to take a road trip 50 miles or more from home from May 27 to May 31 to celebrate the unofficial kickoff to summer. That is a 52% increase compared to last summer, but nearly 9% below pre-pandemic levels in 2019. Regardless, motorists will be met with the most expensive gas prices since 2014.
"This is going to be an expensive summer for motorists. However, we do not expect it to deter travelers from hitting the road. AAA finds that despite the higher pump prices, Americans still take their road trips but just may not travel as far as originally planned, or go to their planned destination and spend a little less," said Jeanette McGee, AAA spokesperson, in a release.
See gas prices for Cincinnati, Ohio and the entire country.
