Rochester’s gas prices fall by only 2 cents this week, breaks trend of 10+ cent weekly drops

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ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Gas prices in Rochester fell by only 2 cents this week. That breaks the trend of gas prices falling by at least 10 cents per week for six straight weeks.

Rochester’s average gas price on Monday was $3.81 per gallon according to AAA, which is creeping closer to the national average of $3.73. As local prices fell, the national average rose by 12 cents this week and 5 cents last week.

Rochester’s prices are higher than the state’s average of $3.63. However, the prices in Rochester dropped much quicker this month compared to the state’s average.

Rochester ranked near the top for most expensive gas in western New York this week. Rochester had the same average price as Buffalo, but Syracuse was 11 cents cheaper. Elmira had the region’s lowest gas price at $3.48 per gallon. Batavia has the highest at $3.75.

The cheapest gas in Rochester was $3.04 per gallon on Sunday while the most expensive was $1.05 higher, found a GasBuddy’s survey. You can find the cheapest local stations through a link to GasBuddy.

In October, the state and Monroe County gas tax relief entered its fourth month. The tax relief has aimed to save consumers $0.28 per gallon at the pump since June 1.

News10NBC reported on a study that suggests that, while consumers benefited initially from the New York State gas tax relief, middlemen and retailers eventually absorbed the gas tax. Those practices minimized the savings for consumers.

RELATED: So where did the gas tax savings go? The data may have the answers

Although the prices in Rochester are falling, they are still $0.34 higher compared to this time last year. Rochester hit a record high for gas prices of $4.99 on June 15 then began a downward trend.

Gas prices have skyrocketed over the past year because of rapid recovery from the pandemic increased the demand so high that supply couldn’t keep up. Europe’s restrictions on importing Russian oil also scrambled world oil prices, affecting the U.S. even though the U.S. imports very little Russian oil. 

GasBuddy said oil prices surged nationally this week because intergovernmental oil organization OPEC+ cut its production by two million barrels a day.

You can explore gas price trends on the website for AAA.