Gas prices rising quickly, says AAA Kansas

If you feel like you’re paying a lot more at the pump lately, you’re not alone.

“Even though we’re still in April, we’re actually seeing summer-like demand for gas,” said Shawn Steward with AAA
Kansas. “Gas stock is tightening up. The supply is tightening up a little bit.”

This has prompted an increase of 11 cents a gallon in Kansas over the past week.

“We’re at $2.63 a gallon on average in Kansas this week,” said Steward.

This isn’t really a surprise. Several factors cause gas prices to rise along with the temperature most years.

“This spring seems to be a little bit more advanced in terms of the pricing and maybe a little earlier increases than what
we’re used to seeing,” said Steward.

In addition to the increase in driving, some unplanned refinery maintenance has combined with the planned changeover from winter blend to the more expensive summer blend gasoline to send prices up faster than we’ve seen in previous years. Some locations in California are already above $4 a gallon. Kansas is still the 15th cheapest state for gas in the country.