(WXYZ) — It feels like we've been coughing up more money this year on nearly everything, with the big one being gas.
Some metro Detroiters have had to make sacrifices so they can afford to get around metro Detroit.
The average price for gas is around $4.02 per gallon, a few cents higher than a week ago, but 17 cents cheaper than a month ago. But, it's still $1.22 more than this time last year.
Drivers I spoke with say they are making changes to accommodate the high prices, and plan to keep those changes going into the summer.
"I quit DoorDash cause it solely relies on driving around all the time so I couldn't do that job," Saied Jamil from Southfield said.
Jamil had to quit driving for DoorDash, because he said it cost around $70 to fill up his V6 engine. For others, it means skipping touring Pure Michigan this summer.
"We will have to cut back on going up north or whatever trips we might normally take," David Robinson said.
So – will we see any relief at the pump this summer?
"I think the short answer is that we will probably stay elevated somewhere in the high three-dollar low four-dollar range," Patrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy said.
Right now, there are a variety of factors like the war in Ukraine and COVID-19, which could both send prices up and down.
"An escalation between Russia and Ukraine, or if the EU puts sanctions on Russia's energy, that has been discussed now for weeks, or things like a COVID surge in China which pushed demand down, so a lot of different issues still kind of unknown how all of those issues come together in the months ahead," De Haan said.
There have been some efforts to control prices, including President Joe Biden's administration releasing millions of barrels of oil from the strategic oil reserve.
03:41:10 "It may not have led to direct relief or noticeable direct relief on gas prices, but it also has worked more effectively to cap how high oil prices will go," De Haan said.
The other effort that has happened – the administration allowing for the use of a cheaper winter blend over a summer blend.
De Haan said once again this will act as more of a cap.
De Haan does not see gas prices dipping until we see some effects of the COVID-19 pandemic behind us, and until there is some type of resolution between Ukraine and Russia.
