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WILTON, Conn. Area residents have grown resigned to the fact that gas prices in Wilton are mostly rising this summer. And they are not particularly happy about it.
Gas prices in Connecticut and Wilton have always risen faster than the nation's average, and as of last week, the state had the most expensive prices in the continental United States, AAA spokeswoman Fran Mayko said.
Currently, the national average for regular is $3.53 per gallon, which is 27 cents lower than Connecticut's average of $3.80, according Connecticut Gas Prices. Tuesday's state average was up about 8 cents from a week earlier and roughly 16 cents from a month ago, Mayko said.
At the Shell station at 912 Danbury Road at School Street, gas Wednesday cost $4.09 for regular if you were paying cash and $4.19 if you were using a credit card.
"My business relies a lot on gas because I have a van and two pickup trucks," said Kevin Barrett, owner of the commercial and residential cleaning company All Clean. He looked at the pump and saw that prices had crept back up to more than $4 a gallon.
"I've seen it under $4 in some places, which is good, because higher prices directly affect my bottom line," he said. "I'm always at the pump, about every two days, so I hope OPEC and the oil companies will play fairly."
Reasons for the spikes in prices this summer include tension in the Middle East, the European economic crisis and rising prices for crude oil. Currently, the cost for crude oil is more than $88 a barrel, and "gas prices could possibly be higher around Labor Day," Mayko said.
Across the street from Wilton High School at the Citgo station on Route 7, the price for regular was nearly 30 cents cheaper than the Shell at $3.82 per gallon.
Wilton resident Elihu Rosen, a chiropractic doctor, said he does not drive much, so he does not feel the affects of price fluctuations as closely. But he said he notices when prices rise dramatically and stay high because "people drive less and there are fewer accidents, and that can affect my business."
Despite the rising prices, Mayko said Connecticut's averages are more than 20 cents cheaper than a year ago this time.
"We're just coming off a steady decrease from the beginning of the summer, which is unusual," she said. "But whatever goes up must come down."
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