West Hawaii motorists this week paid slightly less for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline, an analysis of GasBuddy.com and AAA data shows.
The price per gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in West Hawaii — excluding the Waikoloa resort area — averaged $3.52 between Monday (May 11) and Friday (May 15), according to a week’s worth of GasBuddy.com data from the Kailua-Kona, Waimea, Kealakekua and Waikoloa areas. That’s down a penny from the week prior.
Including the Waikoloa resort area, where prices are regularly higher, motorists this week spent on average $3.57, also down one cent from the week before, according to GasBuddy.com data.
At Kailua-Kona gas stations, motorists spent an average $3.43 per gallon, unchanged from last week. At the Kailua-Kona Costco, where membership is required, a gallon of gas increased to $3.17. On Friday, the price was $3.18.
Drivers fueling up in Waimea paid an average of $3.61 per gallon while the same gallon of gas averaged $3.62 in Waikoloa Village. Filling up in the resort area of Waikoloa resort cost drivers an average of $3.76 per gallon this week. All three prices were unchanged from the week before.
In Kealakekua, motorists spent $3.42 per gallon this week.
Hilo drivers spent $3.16 per gallon, up seven cents from last week, according to GasBuddy.com data. AAA’s Daily Fuel Gauge Report put the average price of gas at $3.19 per gallon this week. AAA does not track gas prices for other areas on the Big Island.
The statewide average for a gallon of regular unleaded fuel was $3.24, up from $3.21 last week, according to the AAA data. One year ago, Hawaii residents were spending $4.37 per gallon.
In Honolulu, a gallon of gas during the week averaged $3.15 per gallon while the Wailuku area of Maui paid $3.36, according to AAA.
Nationwide, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline this week was $2.67. California residents are still paying the highest rate for gas at an average of $3.77 per gallon. South Carolina drivers paid the least this week at $2.37 per gallon.
AAA said this week that regional refinery issues on the West Coast continue to push prices higher in a handful of states, with the majority of the nation’s most expensive markets located in the region, including California and Hawaii.
AAA predicts that automotive travel this Memorial Day holiday will be up 5.3 percent with 33 million travelers compared to last year’s holiday weekend, which would be the highest volume in 10 years. The association predicts prices may not change much by the holiday weekend, which could result in the cheapest Memorial Day gas prices in at least five years.