Sacramento-area drivers, including those in Folsom and El Dorado Hills, are paying $6.04 per gallon for regular gasoline, a 31% jump from a year ago.

The metro average climbed 9 cents in just four days, rising from $5.95 on Monday, Sept. 14, to $6.04 by Friday, Sept. 18, according to AAA data compiled by Stacker. That $1.46-per-gallon increase over the past year translates to roughly $22 more per fill-up for a 15-gallon tank.

California's statewide average hit $6.11, the highest in the nation. Washington was second at $5.57.

Diesel set a new all-time state record of $8.39 per gallon on Friday, Sept. 18, up 62.5% from a year earlier. Diesel powers construction equipment, delivery trucks and farm machinery, and higher costs at the pump can filter into the price of groceries and other goods, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration as reported by KCRA.

Doug Johnson, spokesperson for AAA Mountain West Group, pointed to global oil markets as the main driver. "Crude oil remains high, averaging $100 per barrel amid continued volatility in the Strait of Hormuz," Johnson said in a statement reported by Contra Costa News on Friday, Sept. 18.

In a Monday, Sept. 14, interview with ABC10, Johnson said the usual post-Labor Day price drop has not materialized. California's summer-blend gasoline requirement stays in effect through Oct. 31, meaning the switch to cheaper winter-blend fuel will not happen until after that date.

The national average for regular gas reached about $4.47 on Friday, Sept. 18, more than 40 cents higher than a month earlier, according to AAA. Brown University's Climate Solutions Lab estimated the average U.S. household has spent more than $837 extra on gasoline and diesel since the Iran conflict began Feb. 28, KCRA reported.

Local business owners are feeling the hit. Giovanni Guiulfo, owner of Sacramento-area food truck Señor Burger 916, told KCRA on Sept. 16 that fuel costs hit his operation three ways. "You're spending gas on driving to the food truck, driving a food truck, and then putting gas in the generator," Guiulfo said. "All that adds up."

Sacramento ranked 23rd among California metro areas for gas prices on Friday, Sept. 18. Santa Rosa was the state's most expensive metro at $6.33. California's all-time record for regular gasoline remains $6.44, set June 14, 2022.

Johnson cautioned on ABC10 that "this year has been far from typical," leaving open whether the Nov. 1 winter-blend transition will bring the seasonal relief drivers usually expect.