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Gas prices across Pennsylvania are surging toward $4 per gallon as the United States enters its fifth week of war with Iran, squeezing drivers and businesses across the Keystone State.
AAA's real-time gas index shows the statewide average sitting at $3.95 per gallon as of Monday (March 30), with the national average close behind at $3.99. That's a sharp jump from this time last year, when the national average was $3.14 per gallon.
The price spike traces directly back to Friday (February 28), when President Trump ordered military strikes on Iran. Iran retaliated and then shut down the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway that carries roughly 20% of the world's oil supply. According to the York Daily Record, more than 3,000 ships pass through the strait every month, transporting crude oil, refined petroleum, and liquefied natural gas to markets in Asia, Europe, and the Americas.
The price pain is hitting Pennsylvania communities hard. In Philadelphia, drivers are paying about $3.65 per gallon — up more than 60 cents from a month ago, according to FOX 29. In York County, prices crossed $3.75 per gallon at some stations after rising more than 40 cents since the war began. The cheapest gas in the state can be found in central Pennsylvania, while Philadelphia and its surrounding counties carry the highest prices.
Drivers say the increases are impossible to ignore. Vanessa Walls, a home care worker in South Philadelphia, said, "It's unbelievable." Walls added that her usual $40 fill-up now only gets her three-quarters of a tank. "It's almost gone already and so I'm back two days later getting gas," she said.
Full-time Uber driver Karim Bala said, "I need a lot of gas not just a little bit. I need a lot," adding, "Man, the gas prices went very high. I hope the situation will calm down overseas."
Some worry the pain will go beyond the gas pump. Rhaeem Shabazz of Germantown said, "It takes food off the table and at the same time prices going high means groceries are going to go high."
Fuel analysts with GasBuddy predicted that national average prices would gradually rise above $3 per gallon after the Iran attack — a forecast that has more than come true. AAA Club Alliance spokesperson Morgan Dean noted that West Texas Intermediate crude oil is now selling at $100 per barrel, up from about $67 when the conflict began.
As reported by the Delaware Online, President Trump signaled a peace plan was in the works as of Wednesday (March 25), but the initiative did little to slow the rise in gas prices. Trump also promised to release millions of barrels of held Iranian crude oil, though there is no clear timeline for when — or whether — that move will ease costs at the pump.
Some states are exploring suspending gas taxes to give drivers relief, though Pennsylvania has not announced any such plans.
AAA is advising drivers to shop around, use membership discount programs like Costco, keep tires properly inflated, remove extra weight from vehicles, and drive at steady speeds to conserve fuel.