Four! Binghamton Gas Prices Jump Overnight... Is $5 Next?

Drivers in the Binghamton area received a rude awakening as gasoline prices increased significantly at most stations in the region.

The cost of regular gas rose above four dollars a gallon at many retailers for the first time since October 2012. Most Broome County stations appeared to have boosted prices by between 10 and 20 cents a gallon.

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy, suggested the big overnight jump in the price at the pump could be just the beginning.

Speaking on WNBF Radio's Binghamton Now program early Thursday, De Haan noted "the wholesale spot price of gas is up another 11 cents a gallon this morning."

Regular gasoline at this Mirabito store in Johnson City was 40 cents a gallon cheaper compared to other nearby stations on March 3, 2022. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

De Haan said the wholesale cost of gas - what stations are paying - has increased by $1.10 a gallon since the start of the year.

Will motorists in the Binghamton region see $5 a gallon gas later this year? De Haan said: "It's improbable but not impossible." He said "at the moment that $5 dollar mark, at least for Binghamton, is improbable."

To deal with the rapidly escalating prices, De Haan suggested President Biden could consider a waiver allowing retailers to sell "winter" gasoline year-round. He noted the annual switch to summer-blend gasoline pushes prices up.

De Haan acknowledged there would be environmental repercussions because winter-blend gas doesn't burn as cleanly but the move "could save us maybe 15 to 35 cents a gallon."

Anthony's Service Center on Binghamton's West Side posted these gas prices for full service on March 3, 2022. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.

LOOK: See how much gasoline cost the year you started driving

To find out more about how has the price of gas changed throughout the years, Stacker ran the numbers on the cost of a gallon of gasoline for each of the last 84 years. Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (released in April 2020), we analyzed the average price for a gallon of unleaded regular gasoline from 1976 to 2020 along with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for unleaded regular gasoline from 1937 to 1976, including the absolute and inflation-adjusted prices for each year.

Read on to explore the cost of gas over time and rediscover just how much a gallon was when you first started driving.