Rising gas prices in Delaware start to affect driving habits

The surge in gas prices is causing pain at the pump for Delaware drivers, and may be starting to affect driving habits and vacation plans. 

AAA Mid-Atlantic says the average price of a gallon of regular unleaded in Delaware was $3.69 at the start of this week, up twelve cents from a week earlier.

Gas prices have risen 22-percent since the start of the year.

Prices topped $4.00 a gallon during the summer of 2008.  AAA Mid-Atlantic Public Affairs Specialist Jana Tidwell says while they are cautiously optimistic prices will retreat without crossing that threshold, “the longer high gas prices are sustained the more far-reaching the effects will be on the overall U.S. economic recovery.”

Crude oil prices reached a 30-month high on Friday.  Unrest in the Middle East and North Africa are also factors behind the increase in gas prices.  Debt in some European countries and Chinese inflation worries are also developing concerns.

“Pain at the pump continues to affect motorists, and has begun to curb demand during what is typically the start of the peak driving season,” Tidwell says.

CLICK HERE for more information from AAA about Delaware gas prices.