Terry Richards | CNHI

VALDOSTA — Valdosta set its all-time high gas price record this weekend.

The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in the city Sunday was $4.44, the highest ever, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report.

Numbers eased off a bit Monday, with Valdosta’s average price slipping a couple of cents to $4.42 per gallon, a hike of 19 cents in one week. A year ago, that same gallon of fuel cost $2.90 cents in Valdosta, which means the average cost of gasoline has skyrocketed 65% in one year.

Diesel gas prices have climbed as well, with a gallon costing $5.53 per gallon Sunday, an all-time high, sliding back to $5.52 Monday, the auto club said.

The lowest reported gasoline price in Valdosta Monday was $4.27 per gallon at a West Hill Avenue store, according to the gas tracking website gasbuddy.com.

The Azalea City was tied with Rome and Columbus for the sixth least expensive gas among the 15 Georgia markets monitored by AAA — above Warner Robins, Dalton, Catoosa, Augusta and Albany but below Savannah, Macon, Hinesville, Gainesville, Brunswick, Atlanta and Athens.

The Lowndes County government is monitoring the gas price situation, said Paige Dukes, county manager.

“(The county) doesn’t pay retail prices,” she said. “We buy fuel in bulk … if our prices rise, we’ll make decisions about what to do from there.”

In past gasoline price crises, Lowndes County has asked workers to rideshare with each other and cut back on unnecessary trips, Dukes said.

Nationally, the U.S. broke the $5 price barrier Monday with an average of $5.01 per gallon, up 15 cents in a week, while Georgia’s average of $4.48 per gallon was up 17 cents in the same period, the auto club said.

“Based on the demand we’re seeing, it seems high prices have not really deterred drivers,” said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesperson. “If prices stay at or above $5, we may see people start to change their daily driving habits or lifestyle, but it hasn’t happened yet.”

In midday Monday market action, benchmark U.S. crude oil lost $2.09 to $118.58 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It lost 84 cents to $120.67 on Friday.

Brent crude, the pricing standard for international trading, gave up $1.99 to $120.02 per barrel.

Terry Richards is senior reporter at The Valdosta Daily Times.