After the New Year, pump prices in the state typically turn down due to a decrease in demand. |
Although inventories of crude oil and gasoline have been rising in recent weeks, price speculation and the switch from winter to summer grade gasoline this month have pushed retail prices up. |
Be vigilant about restricting your children from riding with a first-year teen driver. It's tempting to have different options for getting kids and teens to and from school, a job, sports practices and other events, but the risks are high. Parents who understand the risks should be more willing to personally drive children until teens obtain their full licenses or have gained enough driving experience to make them feel comfortable with transporting others. |
Conditions indicate that motorists may see slight increases in retail gasoline prices within the next few days. Typically, pump prices in Texas move lower during this time of year due to a decrease in demand, but with crude oil trading around $63 a barrel that has yet to happen. |
Crude oil prices that continued to stay below $65 a barrel this week, fueled by the warmer than normal winter weather across the U.S., have helped drive retail gasoline prices slightly lower. It remains to be seen however, if these relatively modest declines in retail gasoline prices will continue with the geo-political concerns over Iran's nuclear ambitions. |
Crude prices pushed near the all-time record high of $70.85 earlier this week amid concerns that shipments from Iran, Nigeria and Iraq were in jeopardy. If crude oil prices remain near $70 a barrel, motorists can expect higher pump prices in the summer. |
For the past month, gasoline prices have fallen as inventories of gas and crude oil continued to show a healthy surplus compared to last year. Motorists can expect to see relative price stability for the next couple of weeks. |
Higher gas prices will not deter Texans from traveling this holiday. Nearly 5.1 million Texans are expected to travel for the Christmas - New Year's holiday, up 1.4 percent from last year. When you factor in hotel and rental car rates, gasoline remains a relatively small part of most family travel budgets. |
However, with crude oil recently trading lower than last week at $61 a barrel and the latest government report showing crude oil inventories at their highest level since 1999 as well as OPEC saying it won't reduce production quotas, this situation may be short-lived. |
Improving mobility for seniors is a two-pronged effort. While helping to keep senior drivers on the road, we also have to provide options for those who choose not to drive. That's why it is important to develop mobility alternatives that include safe and convenient public transportation. |
It's also another indication why it's so important for parents to limit teens from being exposed to dangerous driving conditions and also to manage their driving experience. |
It's clear from this analysis that young drivers' lack of experience on the road is a major traffic safety issue. |
More than five million Texans are expected to travel for the Christmas-New Year's holiday, with the majority of those travelers driving to their destination. In an effort to keep the roadways safe, we encourage partygoers to act responsibly by buckling up and having a designated driver or to utilize our Tipsy Tow service. |
Retail gasoline prices have gone up 15 cents in the past two weeks. The increases can be traced to investor speculation leading to higher prices for both crude and wholesale gasoline. With crude trading around $64 a barrel, it doesn't appear likely gasoline will fall below $2 a gallon anytime soon. |
Retail gasoline prices have moved higher against a backdrop of increased crude oil prices. A year ago, crude oil traded at $49 a barrel and gas prices averaged $1.79 -- 49 cents lower than the current average of $2.28. This week, crude hovers around $66 a barrel. |