Rochester’s gas prices are falling but not as much as the national average

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Rochester’s average gas price dropped for the fourth week but they’re not dropping as much as the national average.

Local gas prices ended the week at $3.64 per gallon, a 6 cent drop from the previous week. In the weeks before that, prices dropped by 2 cents for mid-November, then 6 cents, then 2 cents. Rochester has seen a trend of falling gas prices since mid-June, after prices hit an all-time record of $4.99 per gallon.

However, the national average has fallen much steeper than Rochester’s average. The national average this week landed on $3.26 this week after dropping by 14 cents. In the previous weeks, prices fell by 15 cents for mid-November, then 11 cents, then 11 cents.

Rochester prices were lower than the national average throughout all of September and much of October. However, the tides have turned. In the third week of October, the national average fell dramatically while Rochester’s prices climbed.

The cheapest gas in Rochester this week was $3.19 per gallon on Sunday while the most expensive was 70 cents higher, found a GasBuddy’s survey. You can find the cheapest local stations through a link to GasBuddy.

Gas prices in Rochester were 2 cents more expensive than gas in Buffalo and 5 cents more than in Syracuse this week. Rome had the most expensive gas in upstate New York, at $3.67 per gallon, while Elmira took the prize for the cheapest, at $3.46 per gallon.

In December, the state and Monroe County gas tax relief entered its sixth month. The tax relief has aimed to save consumers a total of $0.28 per gallon at the pump – $0.16 at the county level and $0.12 at the state level – since June 1.

The gas tax relief will end on December 31 but one assembly member from the Albany area is calling for the tax relief to be extended for another six months.

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.