Florida's gasoline prices jumped an average of 12 cents a gallon last week, and things won't get any better with spring and summer lying down the road.
Floridians paid an average of $3.35 for a gallon of regular, just 1 cent less than last year's high, which was the most expensive in seven years, according to the AAA auto club.
Prices in Georgia were significantly lower at $3.20 on Sunday, but still much higher than $2.25 a year ago (compared with $2.38 in Florida).
The reason for higher prices, according to AAA, is soaring prices for crude oil, which have risen 15% this year, driven by concerns that global oil supplies will struggle to keep up with soaring demand in 2022.
The price of crude, at $87.35 per barrel, has already surpassed last year's high of $84.65.
Jacksonville's average gas price Sunday was $3.34 per gallon, up from $3.19 a week earlier, AAA said. A year ago, the price in Jacksonville was only $2.33 per gallon.
In addition, Jacksonville residents began paying a higher local gas tax on Jan. 1, when it rose from 6 cents to 12 cents.
The Jacksonville City Council approved the higher tax to pay for a range of infrastructure projects, including the Emerald Trail network of trails and parks, the Ultimate Urban Circulator Skyway replacement project, improvements for dangerous intersections and resilience efforts to protect against flooding.
"Unfortunately for drivers, it doesn't seem that oil prices will see any significant relief anytime soon," AAA said in a news release Monday. "Gas prices may only get more expensive as fuel demand increases because of spring break and summer road trips."
