Gas prices expected to continue to rise in 2017

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Drivers are paying the highest New Year’s gas prices since 2014.

Experts say that could only be the beginning of an expensive year at the pump.

The average price for a gallon of gas is about 35 cents more than it was a year ago.

Prices have jumped an average of 18 cents per gallon just in the last few weeks. It’s a trend that is expected to continue in 2017.

“I don’t like it. I don’t think anybody does. You’ve got to kind of roll with the punches though,” driver Robert Hunter said.

The rapid rise is blamed on OPEC's decision in November to cut production, which means a jump in the price of crude oil.

That is bad news for Hunter, who owns a courier service transporting legal documents. He puts up to 50,000 miles a year on his trucks.

“It's pretty unavoidable, so it's probably going to make our prices go up,” Hunter said.

Fuel prices normally drop during winter months because of lower demand, but they have already been steadily climbing.

Analysts say drivers can expect to pay up to 50 cents more on a gallon of gas this year than they did in 2016.

"I'm on the road a good deal, probably a couple of hours a day, but if it's under $3, it doesn't really matter to me too much I guess,” driver Rodney Kryst said.

Last year, it was a roller coaster year for oil prices, especially after a leak in the Colonial Pipeline resulted in a temporary shutdown. That led to price spikes in the Charlotte area and across the Southeast.

Drivers told Channel 9 that regardless of the price, it won't keep them from hitting the road.

“We can't control it, so (we’ve) just got to take it as it comes," a driver said.

Nationwide, gas prices averaged about $2.12 per gallon in 2016. Even with the expected increase in 2017, prices will still be less than they were in 2014, when the national average was $3.34 per gallon.

In Charlotte, drivers are paying an average of $2.19 for a gallon of regular. It's seven cents higher across North Carolina.

In South Carolina, which is still one of the cheapest states for gas, drivers are paying $2.09 per gallon.

Check gas prices in your area, here.

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