Texas Gas Prices Climb Toward $4 a Gallon as Fall Relief Fails to Arrive

Texas drivers got another unwelcome surprise at the pump this week. The statewide average for unleaded climbed to $3.93 a gallon, according to AAA Texas, up ten cents from last week and creeping toward the four-dollar mark. El Paso is feeling it worst at $4.41 a gallon, while Houston drivers are getting the best deal in the state at $3.83. San Angelo posted the biggest single-week jump, rising 21 cents to $4.15.

What makes this sting is the timing. Gas prices usually slide after the summer travel season wraps up, but crude oil is staying expensive thanks to a pileup of global tensions, including friction between the U.S. and Iran, new hostilities in the Red Sea, and the shutdown of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline. Brent crude is sitting at $104.70 a barrel, with WTI at $101.80. The national average is $4.44 a gallon, so Texas is still below the country as a whole, though that’s little comfort for anyone commuting to Fort Sill or hauling kids to Friday night football.

For families around Lawton, the squeeze lands right as fall festivals and holiday planning get underway. Every extra dollar at the pump is a dollar that doesn’t go toward groceries, gifts, or a weekend trip into the Wichita Mountains. Analysts aren’t predicting quick relief, so comparing prices before you fill up may be the best tool you’ve got. Where are you finding the cheapest gas right now? Let us know in the comments.