Death and taxes? How about including the climbing gas prices of the past month into that expression about the certainties of life?
Climbing fuel costs are putting many area – as well as national – motorists into a state of panic, and the situation isn’t getting better. Many financial analysts believe gas will top $5 per gallon by summer's end.
On the bright side, Patch is here in an effort to help local consumers get the best bang for their bucks in these hard times. Every week, an article similar to this will guide you to the lowest gas prices in Lacey and the surrounding area.
Find out what's happening in Laceywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Pricing data for Friday, March 18:
The month of March brought the biggest rise in fuel prices yet nationwide, with a rise of 12 percent from last month, according to AAA. Some good news, however: This week in particular saw the slightest rise of 1 percent nationally and a somewhat steady level of pricing throughout the New Jersey area.
Find out what's happening in Laceywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
According to AAA, the national average for Friday, March 18 for a gallon of regular is $3.54, midgrade $3.67 and premium $3.80.
Listed below, we see the local average is well below the national, showing a good sign in comparison to high cost areas like New York state and the West Coast, who according to AAA pay the high cost of between $3.60 and $4.02 per gallon of regular.
Locally, the best deal is coming from Forked River with an average of $3.33 per gallon of regular at Wawa and Shell. Unsurprisingly, the most expensive comes from Lukoil at the Garden State Parkway Service Center in Forked River, at $3.41 per gallon of regular.
Lacey residents should find the best deals within the Forked River area with exception of the Parkway Service Center.
If you are driving through Barnegat, you should expect to pay an average of $3.36 for regular this weekend from Wawa and Lukoil, while Ocean Acres residents will pay an average of around $3.38 for regular.
Gas pricing in the coming week could possibly rise due to Japan’s situation, but by the looks of it, the weekend will not be affected for travel.
Station
Regular
Midgrade
Premium
Wawa (945 West Bay Ave. Barnegat)
3.35
3.49
3.63
Lukoil (866 West Bay Ave. Barnegat)
3.37
3.52
3.65
Riggins (425 N. Main St. Barnegat)
3.37
3.53
3.67
Sunoco (406 route 9 Waretown)
3.35
3.49
3.69
Lacey Shell (930 Lacey Road Forked River)
3.33
3.41
3.59
Wawa (744 Lacey Road Forked River)
3.33
3.53
3.63
Lukoil (GSP Service station Forked River)
3.41
3.54
3.63
Exxon (334 Route 9 Lanoka Harbor)
3.44
3.54
3.74
Wawa (701 Route 9 Lanoka Harbor)
3.31
3.43
3.53
Delta (602 Route 9 Lanoka Harbor)
3.27
3.35
3.54
Wawa (220 Atl. City Blvd Bayville)
3.31
3.41
3.51
Check back next week for updates in the first of many articles on gas prices in our area.
