GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Average gas prices in West Michigan are currently sitting at $3.24 per gallon, a drop from $3.69 at this time last year. Despite the decrease, residents are still feeling the pinch in their wallets.
"We expect that over the course of the summer, gas prices this year will be quite a bit lower than last year," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy Tuesday. "The price of oil is quite a bit below where it was last year. That's partly due to OPEC raising oil production and also economic uncertainty, the potential over trade and tariffs continues to loom."
Residents like Bill Arnold, however, said the price of gas is still too high. He said he's reduced his driving because of the costs.
“Gas prices don't need to be as high as they are,” Arnold said at Riverside Park Tuesday. “They'll jump from $2.99 to $3.17 at the snap of a finger."
What Arnold described is called price cycling, a competitive pricing strategy used at gas stations to attract customers.
"Prices make a big jump up every one to two weeks, or once every one to two weeks, when gas prices shoot up 25 to 50 cents a gallon. After they do make that big jump up, they start to trickle back down for another 10 days or so before they jump back up," De Haan explained.
For those looking to save, De Haan recommends using tools like Waze to identify cheaper options, as prices can vary even within West Michigan.
"West Michigan can see these pockets of low prices... Sometimes it's in Holland, sometimes it's in Sparta. Can be anywhere, and that's why it's important when motorists get down to a quarter of a tank or before they're ready to fill up, check those apps out there, because you never know if there's a lower gas price just a couple of minutes away," said De Haan.
Michael Hartsuff, visiting Grand Rapids from Grosse Pointe Woods near Detroit, noted a slight relief in gas costs.
"I always notice them because as we travel here, it's a little bit more expensive where we live," Hartsuff said. "It hasn't impacted our finances too much, but definitely something that we keep an eye on."
"Depending on where you're going in the state this summer, gas prices in Michigan tend to be pretty similar to Indiana. Michigan's gas prices still are much cheaper than what you'll find in Chicago. So if you're headed to Chicago, fill up in Michigan. Or if you're headed down like places like Cedar Point, gas prices tend to be quite a bit lower in Ohio," De Haan added.
"So, if you are crossing the state line, you may want to be aware of what gas prices are down the road, because they fluctuate significantly."
This story was reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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