AUSTIN, Texas — If you're hitting the road this summer and filling up your tank, you've probably already noticed the price of gas rising.
According to AAA, the average for a gallon of gas in Texas has risen to an average of $3.39 per gallon. In Austin, that number is five cents higher at $3.44 per gallon – up 22 cents in just one week.
Gas prices are a concern for the Ridings family, who are on a fixed income and already dealing with higher property taxes and grocery costs.
"You cannot increase your pay like everything else is increasing. So you have to have less and less commodities," Verne Ridings said.
AAA spokesman Daniel Armbruster said there are a number of factors leading to the rising fuel costs.
"Saudi Arabia, earlier this summer, announced they would be cutting back oil production through August. They are part of OPEC [Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries], [and] with oil production being cut with OPEC as well as the summer driving season – we are seeing record travel – you have high demand and supply is decreasing," Armbruster said.
Armbruster said both overseas and here in the U.S., hotter temperatures can also play a role.
"There have been reports that some refiners on the Gulf Coast have had some impact from the warmer temperatures and the output they are able to produce," Armbruster said.
Overall, the state average is still not as high as it was this time in 2022, when gas costs averaged at around $3.80 per gallon.
Despite this, Armbruster said if crude oil prices keep increasing, so will gas prices.