STURGIS, S.D. - Average retail gasoline prices in South Dakota have risen 4-cents per gallon in the past week according to gasoline price website SouthDakotaGasPrices.com.
Petroleum Analyst Patrick DeHaan warns people to get used to it.
"As we continue to move towards warmer weather, gasoline prices will follow, with prices accelerating higher at a faster pace come late March into April, so if motorists think this is bad, they should really hold on to their chairs."
DeHaan says prices are cheaper in the Dakotas than they are nationwide because of several factors -- among them the booming oil business in the Bakken oil fields of western North Dakota.
The average price of gasoline in South Dakota is $3.41 per gallon.
The national average also crept up this past week to $3.51 -- 4.5 cents higher than the week before. The highest gas prices in the nation can be found on the west and east coast.
Including the change in gas prices in South Dakota during the past week, prices yesterday were 24-cents per gallon higher than the same day one year ago, and are 21-cents per gallon higher than a month ago.
