With the United States now entering the second month of the military conflict in Iran, consumers are feeling rapidly increasing pain at the gas pump.
As of Tuesday, gasbuddy.com — a crowdsourced consumer comparison website — reports the national average for a gallon of gasoline to be $4.02. This represents a full $1 increase over last month, and $1.29 above the 2026 low of $2.73 in early January. And according to reporting from Reuters, last Wednesday saw diesel prices pass $4 per gallon for the first time since the spring of 2024.
The price of gasoline was $3.99 at an Exxon gas station on ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä's Washington Street East on March 31, 2026.
LAURA BILSON | Gazette-Mail File photo
As of Tuesday afternoon, the average price of gasoline per gallon in the Mountain State was $3.89. This is an increase of $1.07 since last month, and more than 90 cents since this time last year. Prices range from a high of $3.98 per gallon in Berkeley County in the Eastern Panhandle, to a low of $3.48 in Greenbrier County.
At an average of $3.94 — and as high as $3.99 at some locations — the ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä metro area is currently seeing prices above the state average.
“Well, when we declare war on the Middle East, what do we think is going to happen?†ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä resident Guy Bucci said while filling up at the Washington Street Exxon in ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä's East End neighborhood, where the price per gallon reached $3.99. “It’s no surprise.â€
Expressing a similar sentiment was St. Albans resident Nick Nelson, who stopped at the Exxon to fill up on his way to his coal mining job in Cabin Creek.
“I wish there would have been a better plan for oil production and a better plan to manage the oil surplus in our country so we wouldn’t be so dependent on oil coming from the Middle East,†Nelson said. “Then maybe the gas prices wouldn’t have risen as fast. It seems like they’ve risen really quick.â€
In light of the price increase, Nelson noted, he will have to be more conscientious in his trip planning for the foreseeable future.
“It’s putting a damper on things,†Nelson added. “We’re all going to have to kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. When you go out, make sure to get some errands done so you don’t have to go back out.â€
Though Nelson said the rapid increase in fuel prices has “hurt financially,†he feels military action in Iran is still the right course of action.
“I don’t think we can allow dangerous people to have nuclear [weapons] that can kill a lot of people,†Nelson said. “I have faith in Donald Trump that he’s doing the right thing. I think he’s for the working man. There’s a lot of politicians in D.C. [who] have no clue how you and I live.â€
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