Uncertainty over the supply of gas, with the potential disruption of refinery operations on the Gulf Coast, led to a jump in gas prices by as much as 15 cents a gallon overnight Monday, according to Mike Right vice president of public Affairs of AAA Missouri.
The best gas prices around Ballwin and Ellisville are at $3.79/gallon (at Mobil, BP, Phillips 66 and QuikTrip locations in Ellisville). The Costco at Manchester Highlands has the lowest in the area at $3.51 as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the St. Louis Gas Prices website.
For a daily up-to-date look at gas prices in the area, as well as information about your daily commute, check out "Commute" on the Patch home page.
Right doesn't expect the jump in gas prices to last long, probably coming back down by the Labor Day weekend.
"Hopefully that's the end of it," he said. "It (higher gas prices) doesn't look like it will be a long term thing."
However, Right said much will depend on the severity of Hurricane Isaac and how much or how little damage it does to the oil refineries on the Gulf Coast.
As for Labor Day as a benchmark for a change in gas prices, Right said the price "goes up as often as it goes down."
"What's driving the price right now is the potential disruption of supply."
