Drivers across the country are seeing another week of record-high gas prices, including here in Pennsylvania and Erie.
According to AAA, the national average price for a gallon of gas is $4.31, up sixteen cents from last week. In Pennsylvania, the average is $4.49 per gallon, a nineteen- cent increase. Here in Erie, drivers are paying an average of $4.54 per gallon, up seventeen cents from last week.
The increase stems from the rising price of crude oil, which is currently selling for about $101.97 a barrel. Before the conflict in the Middle East began, crude oil was selling for between $50 and $60 a barrel.
According to Lynda Lambert, a spokesperson for AAA, “We have seen gas prices jump significantly in the past week, and it’s all due to the price of crude oil. As we all know, there’s a lot of uncertainty in the Middle East right now.”
Typically, gas prices begin to decline as summer travel comes to an end and demand falls.
“Usually, gasoline prices go down this time of year. Right now, summer travel season is over, so demand falls and people are driving less”, said Lambert.
The increase in gas and diesel prices may have people and businesses reevaluating their budgets, but that’s not necessarily the case at the Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority.
As Jeremy Peterson, the Executive Director of the EMTA said, “We are part of the Council of Governments, and we come up with a negotiated price for diesel. It’s already a three-year agreement, so right now we are paying a lot less than what people are paying at the pump compared to what we are actually filling our buses up with.”
EMTA only uses diesel to fuel some of its buses. In 2018, the agency began switching its fleet to compressed natural gas, or CNG, and officials said the change has provided numerous benefits.
“Obviously, the price of diesel, number one, but our particulate, our pollution, our carbon footprint greatly reduced, which is a good thing. Out of our fleet of 70 buses, we are now up to 55 that are completely powered by compressed natural gas,” said Peterson.
As CNG becomes a more popular alternative, more fueling stations are popping up, including one located on the same property as the EMTA headquarters.
With it becoming more expensive to fill up at the pump, Peterson said the EMTA has seen an increase in ridership.
“We normally see, like I said, an ebb and flow of the system as far as ridership is concerned. But once again, we are still battling the obstacles of COVID, businesses closing a lot earlier than they are used to, but a lot more not open as much as they are used to”, explained Peterson.
Peterson said the decisions the EMTA made nearly a decade ago are continuing to pay off today.
With schools back in session, EMTA officials are also reminding riders that students and faculty at local universities can ride the EMTA for free by using the Token Transit or MyStop apps.