MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. — Maricopa County has the most expensive gas in Arizona right now, according to AAA.
As of Thursday, the county is averaging $5.02 for a gallon of regular gas, and prices could be sticking around.
It's tough already for Jason and Destiny Smith, who say the higher gas prices make it hard to afford even rent. So they're doing what they can to adjust.
"Limit our travel to picking up our daughter at school, dropping her off at school - and doing whatever it is - getting to work, doing some side hustles," Jason Smith said.
"Only drive when we pretty much need to," Destiny Smith said.
Even Ralph Lamontagne, who's from Los Angeles, is finding Phoenix's average gas price of $5.01 high too. Currently, in Los Angeles-Long Beach, the average price for a gallon of regular is $4.94, according to AAA.
"I've been to Georgia, I've been to the Midwest and they're nothing close to LA and not even close to here," Lamontagne said.
There are a few reasons gas prices have been climbing, according to Julian Paredes, a spokesperson with AAA.
"There's scheduled spring maintenance that’s happening in Texas and New Mexico, that really hurt the supply in Arizona and at the same time OPEC recently decided to cut some of their supply and that put a lot of pressure on the global oil market," Paredes said.
While Paredes says the oil market is cooling, and refineries are expected to come back online, summer travel is coming.
"The problem is Memorial Day weekend is coming up and that’s usually when demand and gas prices go up anyway, so it’s possible these prices might be sticking around," Paredes said.
Some drivers like Alvaro Bustos don't mind that reality.
"It's an everyday thing; I don't really mind it. Something I'm gonna use every day. I don't even look at the gas prices," Bustos said.
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