WACO, Texas (KXXV) — Gas prices are rising across Texas and the country, prompting drivers to turn to apps, loyalty programs, and rewards to save money.
AAA lists the national average for regular gas at $4.13 a gallon. This follows a sharp increase linked to the ongoing conflict with Iran in the Middle East.
For many Central Texas drivers, filling up is now a budget decision. Recent Baylor University graduate Daniel Taylor said the price swings mean making adjustments to his daily routine.
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"At first when it just hit that sudden increase I was like, yeah this is kind of tough," Taylor said.
"But seeing that they're kind of going down now it's getting better, but there's definitely been a budget kind of adjustment to help kind of," Taylor said.
Taylor told me he found one way to take some stress off of his commute.
"I go to QT a lot because they have the 10% or 10 cents off per gallon and so that's, I try and go there all the time and then if not just kind of just deal with it," Taylor said.
AARP reports more drivers are looking for creative ways to save through loyalty programs and gas apps. Walmart, Shell, Exxon Mobil, and 7-Eleven offer per-gallon discounts or points back. AARP also told me some grocery rewards and credit card points can help drivers chip away at costs.
While the war in Iran is affecting gas and oil prices in Central Texas, experts told me Iran is not the main source of oil for the United States.
"We're an oil exporting country, so there's never going to be an issue of shortage of oil to the United States," Steve Cotton, who works in wealth management, said.
"It's really 80% of it goes to, you know, China, India, and Asia, and they have far more at stake in this than we do," Cotton said.
"It's imperative to them to see the strait opened up and secured, but one of the things that's complicating it is the Iranians are claiming the right to charge a toll or extract tribute just like the old Barbary pirates in the early 1800s," Cotton said.
"People need to be prepared for continued fluctuations in oil prices and unfortunately we're going to see it at the pump and in our economy," Cotton said.
With gas prices still tied closely to global events, drivers should expect more ups and downs in the future.
This story was reported on-air 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.
