Average retail gasoline prices in Modesto have risen 5.0 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.61/gallon Sunday, according to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 201 gas outlets in Modesto. This compares with the national average that has increased 2.7 cents per gallon in the last week to $2.20/gallon, according to gasoline price website GasBuddy.com.

Including the change in gas prices in Modesto during the past week, prices Sunday were 12.5 cents per gallon lower than the same day one year ago and are 18.3 cents per gallon higher than a month ago. The national average has increased 5.1 cents per gallon during the last month and stands 9.3 cents per gallon lower than this day one year ago.

Areas nearby Modesto and their current gas price climate: Stockton - $2.66/gallon, up 2.2 cents per gallon from last week’s $2.63; Oakland - $2.78, up 1.7 cents per gallon from last week’s $2.76; San Jose - $2.80, up 2.4 cents from last week’s $2.77/gallon.

According to GasBuddy historical data, gasoline prices on Sept. 19 in Modesto have ranged widely over the last five years: $2.74/gallon in 2015, $3.60 in 2014, $3.94 in 2013, $4.05 in 2012 and $3.82/gallon in 2011.

“While gasoline prices have drifted lower in parts of the country, it’s impossible to ignore the elephant in the room: one of the largest gasoline pipelines in the country is out of service and a band-aid is not going to fix the problems in the Southeast as a result,” said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.com.

“On September 9, a mine inspector in Alabama stumbled upon a large spill from Colonial Pipeline’s large Line 1 pipeline spanning from Texas to New Jersey, the artery and only major source of gasoline deliveries for much of the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. The pipeline was immediately shut down due to ‘integrity issues.’ Since the shutdown, gasoline deliveries have all but halted and inventories at local gasoline racks have quickly been depleting as panicked motorists fill their tanks, leading to gas price spikes, supply outages and headaches in six primary states: Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.”

GasBuddy is the premiere source for real-time local gas prices. Founded in 2000, GasBuddy.com developed as an initiative to provide consumers access to local, current gas prices. Through the GasBuddy.com website and the free GasBuddy mobile app, users can find and share gas prices with fellow drivers, saving big money at the pump.