Rochester’s average gas price increases for the first time in months

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Rochester’s average gas price rose by 9 cents this week after falling for at least two months straight.

The average price in Rochester on Monday was $3.79, according to AAA. That makes Rochester’s prices more expensive than the national average by 3 cents. Last week, Rochester was cheaper than the national average by 10 cents.

The New York State average rose even higher than locally, increasing by 14 cents this week to land at $3.82 per gallon. That puts the state’s average at 6 cents above the national average.

Prices in Rochester have fallen significantly since hitting an all-time high of $4.99 per gallon on June 15. However, the decline has slowed down in the past few weeks. Last week and the week before, prices fell by only 1 cent. That was preceded by a 2-cent drop. The last time that prices fell by 10 cents or more was the first week of October.

Rochester ranked near the middle for most expensive gas in western New York this week. Rochester’s prices are 3 cents more expensive than in Buffalo and 6 cents more expensive than in Syracuse, which had the region’s cheapest gas prices at $3.73 per gallon. The region’s most expensive was Watertown at $3.83 per gallon.

The cheapest gas in Rochester was $3.39 per gallon on Sunday while the most expensive was 60 cents higher, found a GasBuddy’s survey. You can find the cheapest local stations through a link to GasBuddy.

Gasbuddy said that, while the national average fell by 3 cents this week, prices in the northeast have increased because of a tight supply. Meanwhile, California and much of the west saw a sharp decline in prices.

Rochester’s prices are still $0.37 higher than this time last year. The difference is about the same for the national average but is only $0.22 for the state average.

In October, the state and Monroe County gas tax relief entered its fourth month. The tax relief has aimed to save consumers $0.28 per gallon at the pump since June 1.

News10NBC reported on a study that suggests that, while consumers benefited initially from the New York State gas tax relief, middlemen and retailers eventually absorbed the gas tax. Those practices minimized the savings for consumers.

RELATED: So where did the gas tax savings go? The data may have the answers

Gas prices have skyrocketed over the past year because of rapid recovery from the pandemic increased the demand so high that supply couldn’t keep up. Europe’s restrictions on importing Russian oil also scrambled world oil prices, affecting the U.S. even though the U.S. imports very little Russian oil. 

You can explore gas price trends on the website for AAA.