Fears Of A Second Gas Price Spike In NJ In A Week Are Calmed

by KYW's David Madden

TRENTON, NJ (CBS) -- An explosion on a gasoline pipeline down south last week was feared to cause prices at the pump to skyrocket along the east coast. But that hasn't happened, and the ruptured pipeline is expected to be back in operation this weekend.

New Jersey drivers have already had a hard time this week on the petroleum front.

A 23 cent-a-gallon gas tax hike has left a lot of people with a pain in their wallet.

When word went out that a supply cutoff from the Colonial Pipeline, which serves much of the eastern seaboard, could create a spike in fuel prices, you can just imagine how that made Garden State drivers worry.

"I think it's a situation where we're just going to have to wait and see," AAA Mid-Atlantic spokeswoman Sue Madden told KYW Newsradio. "But I don't think that the prices are going to go up real dramatically."

Oil futures prices took a jump right after the Halloween explosion in Alabama that killed one and injured five. But they've come down as pipeline operators began repairs and it became clear operations might resume in relatively short order.