Gasoline prices in Indiana have hit a new high, breaking a record set last spring, the AAA Hoosier Motor Club said Wednesday.
A new record-high average was established Tuesday for self-serve unleaded regular at $2.073 a gallon, club spokesman Greg Seiter said. The statewide average was down slightly Wednesday, at $2.060.
The previous record average for self-serve unleaded regular was $2.071, set on May 25, 2004.
In Muncie, prices were around $2.119, and they are expected to continue to rise, Alfonzo Fleming, Meijer gas station employee, said.
"Prices in New Castle and Indianapolis are cheaper, and people out here are wondering why," Fleming said. "People are concerned with how high it will go up. They are wondering what's going on. They feel deceived and lied to."
He said he thinks prices will reach almost $2.50 by the summer.
Junior Jenny Bierck, a secondary education major, said she is reducing the amount of time she spends driving.
"I'm only using my car when I have to now," she said. "Guess I'm not making midnight trips to Taco Bell anymore."
Gasoline prices will not be going down much anytime soon, Seiter said.
''This is probably just the beginning,'' he said. ''I'm not saying gas prices are going to continue to skyrocket, but experience tells us gas prices will continue to move up some over the next few weeks.''
March typically marks the beginning of increased gas prices in the United States, he said.
The higher prices were not confined to Indiana. Nationwide, the average price of a gallon of self-serve regular was $2.053 Wednesday, less than a penny short of the record high.
The high price of crude oil was the main reason for the high prices, Seiter said. It was near $54 a barrel Wednesday, compared to $37 a year ago.
In Indiana, the highest prices reported by the motor club were in South Bend, where a gallon averaged $2.091. The cheapest average price was in Terre Haute, at $1.983.
The state's average gas price a month ago was $1.886, nearly 10 percent less than the new record.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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