BALTIMORE — According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, gas prices hit a ten-year high over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, when adjusted for inflation.
Energy analysts believe drivers might have to wait until Labor Day before seeing any significant drop in prices at the pump, as the demand tends to go down in August.
Millions of Americans traveling over the holiday weekend found unprecedented prices at the pump.
AAA reports the average price for regular in Maryland is at $4.59 while the national average reached $4.62 a gallon on Memorial Day.
It's $0.44 more expensive than what the national average was a month ago.
It's also a huge jump from last memorial day when it was three-oh-five.
Seven states are now averaging five-dollar-a-gallon gas, and two more states are just pennies away from reaching those numbers.
Soaring gas prices reflect strong demand as people increased their driving plans over the holiday weekend while the supply remained sluggish.
Experts at the website GasBuddy say demand usually starts to fall in August, which could help the cost of gas to drop, but severe weather in the Atlantic could be a wild card between now and the end of summer.
GasBuddy head of petroleum analysis Patrick De Haan said “with an above average hurricane forecast. That is a high risk that we could see prices remaining elevated basically through Labor Day.”
“As we progress beyond Memorial Day, I now peg our odds at $5 a gallon gasoline nationwide at 60%. So, that could be coming,” De Haan said.
Meanwhile, gas prices in Maryland will go up another $0.07 by Independence Day when the state's gas tax increase goes into effect on July 1st. State lawmakers have been reluctant to get rid of the automatic increase or bring back a complete gas tax holiday because of its impact on transportation spending.
In an appearance on FOX News over the weekend, Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md, said “Energy costs are way too high, the president is taking some steps to ease that by the release of our reserves, we recognize the international circumstances was a war in Ukraine and energy prices are not determined here in the United States, but we need to do more about it.”
