Motorists in Sacramento and the rest of the state have received an unwelcome holiday surprise: rising gas prices at the same time the rest of the nation is paying less.
The average retail price of gas in the Sacramento area rose about 6 cents over the past week to $2.54 a gallon, according to national gas price tracker GasBuddy.com. That’s on top of a nearly 3-cent gain the previous week.
The current price is 3.4 cents per gallon lower than it was one year ago but 2.1 cents higher than a month ago.
GasBuddy said the December increases in the Sacramento area were the first meaningful gains since early July.
Things are worse in Southern California. GasBuddy said the average retail price of gas in the Los Angeles area on Monday was nearly $3.04 a gallon, which has helped push the statewide average to $2.84 a gallon.
