The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in Santa Cruz County is inching closer to $4, a price much of the rest of California is already paying.
The average price of regular gasoline in California jumped 22.8-cents in the past week to a statewide average of $3.904, according to the state Energy Almanac.
The Wall Street Journal reported the average price at the pump in the San Francisco area was $3.93 earlier this week, up 21 cents from late January. The price of a gallon of gas has already topped $4 in Southern California, averaging $4.03 on Tuesday, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge Report.
The spike in gas prices was traced back to the usual suspects: refinery problems, high crude prices and the costs of converting production lines to California's summer gas blend, the Mercury News reported.
In Santa Cruz, the cheapest gas is at Costco ($3.77 on Friday morning). Most gas stations were still pricing fuel around $3.85 Friday morning, which is slightly below the state average, according to Gasbuddy.com.
Below are some of the best gas prices available in Santa Cruz according to Gasbuddy.com.
- Costco, 120 Sylvania Ave & Harvey W Blvd. Regular: $3.77 Premium: $3.97
- USA Gasoline, 2680 Soquel Ave & 7th Ave. Regular: $3.79 Premium: n/a
- Valero, 335 Mission St & Chestnut St. Regular: $3.83 Premium: $4.03
- Valero, 1319 Ocean St & Franklin St. Regular: $3.85 Premium: $4.05
- Rod & Ros, 1024 Water St & Seabright Ave. Regular: $3.86 Premium: $4.06
