Gas prices in Pittsburgh continue to rise, and little relief is in sight. Here's when you should fill your tank
To put it bluntly, it can be disheartening to pull into a gas station these days. Since we are so captive to our lifestyles, you have to go, so you have to buy gas, and it impacts everything we do.
The prospects are less than encouraging that we'll get relief on gas prices any time soon; in fact, look for prices to go even higher.
It's somehow incredible to realize that a strip of water 7,000 miles away from Pittsburgh has such a direct impact on what we pay for gas when we squeeze the handle on the pump here.
Why are gas prices in Pittsburgh so high?
"We can't really do anything about it; we need the gas to get to work," said Head of Petroleum Analysis at GasBuddy.com, Patrick de Haan. "Between tariffs and this war [in Iran] that is happening, right now, I think the American consumer is paying the price."
Like it or not, our price at the pump flows with the waves in the Strait of Hormuz.
"I think much of where we're going from here still is really the Strait of Hormuz and whatever the status is there, whether positive or negative," de Haan said.
He also said that right now, the status of the strait is mostly negative, and that this week, we're going to see another jump in prices.
Will gas prices in Pittsburgh fall any time soon?
"We could see prices jumping another 10, 20 cents over the next week, call it 7-12 days or so," he said.
He did add one caveat, though, it depends on what happens 7,000 miles away, saying every day is a new day on how long this continues.
So, this literally is moving day by day, riding the waves of political moves there and here.
When should I buy gas?
Usually, when prices fluctuate, there's a best day to fill up your tank to get the most bang for your buck, but this time? Short of a dramatic agreement involving the end of the war, prices are unlikely to go down.
Now, it's just a question of how many more cents we're going to pay tomorrow, or each day going forward.
