BUFFALO, N.Y. — The headache at the pump continues as gas prices once again jumped overnight.
According to the latest update from AAA Wednesday morning, the average cost for a gallon of gas in Western New York is $4.50. That's an 8 cent jump overnight and breaks the previous record high, which was set on Tuesday.
The average cost of a gallon of gas in Western New York is still above the national average of $4.40 a gallon, which is $1.42 more per gallon than this time last year.
As for New York State as a whole, prices went up another 5 cents overnight, up to $4.62 per gallon on average. This is the highest recorded average price to date. In addition, diesel prices are soaring as well with a new all-time record of $6.44 per gallon on average in New York State, according to AAA.
At this time, gas prices here in Western New York remain the lowest of any region in the state.
With gas prices steadily increasing, oil prices have dipped over the last few days. On Tuesday, 2 On Your Side's Michael Wooten spoke with Patrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, to discuss why gas is getting more expensive as oil prices decline.
"Well you can have all the oil in the world and that oil could be $5 a barrel, but if there's nobody to refine it, you're going to have gas prices that are completely disconnected and could theoretically be $10 a gallon when oil is $5 a barrel. It's all about refining capacity and that's what a lot of Americans don't think about," De Haan said.
You can watch the full interview with DeHaan below.
AAA says drivers can conserve fuel by mapping their routes, avoiding peak traffic times, using cruise control when possible and combining errands into one trip.
AAA also notes that drivers should make sure their vehicle's tire pressure is at the recommended level to achieve the best gas mileage. Drivers should also remove any unnecessary and bulky items from their vehicle because it takes more fuel to accelerate a heavy vehicle.
For more information about how to look up gas prices across the country, or to get more fuel-saving tips from AAA, head to the AAA website.