In a week where motorists had to shell out much more money than in the recent past, there were price increases seen throughout the region.

Average gasoline prices in Modesto have risen 17.2 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $5.42/gallon as of Sept. 26, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 201 stations in Modesto. Prices in Modesto are 30.6 cents per gallon higher than a month ago and stand $1.18/gallon higher than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has declined 5.1 cents in the last week and stands at $4.88 per gallon.

According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Modesto was priced at $4.99/gallon on Sept. 26 while the most expensive was $6.39, a difference of $1.40/gallon. The lowest price in the state was $4.49 while the highest was $7.14, a difference of $2.65/gallon.

The national average price of gasoline has risen 3.2 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $3.67/gallon. The national average is down 17.5 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands 49.3 cents per gallon higher than a year ago, according to GasBuddy data compiled from more than 11 million weekly price reports covering over 150,000 gas stations across the country.

Neighboring areas and their current gas prices include: Stockton - $5.39/gallon, up 18.3 cents per gallon from last week’s $5.21; Oakland - $5.69, up 20.1 cents from $5.49/gallon; and San Jose - $5.63, up 17.9 cents per gallon from last week’s $5.45/gallon.

“One of the longest gas price declines on record has finally come to an end after 14 weeks, with gas prices shooting up in several regions amidst myriad refinery issues from the West Coast to the Great Lakes and in between,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a wider gamut of price behaviors coast to coast in my career. A slew of unexpected refinery disruptions, including fires and routine maintenance, have seemingly all happened in a short span of time, causing wholesale gas prices to spike in areas of the West Coast, Great Lakes and Plains states – and some of those areas could see prices spike another 25 to 75 cents per gallon or more until issues are worked out.”

GasBuddy is the authoritative voice for gas prices and the only source for station-level data. GasBuddy’s survey updates 288 times every day from the most diverse list of sources covering nearly 150,000 stations nationwide, the most comprehensive and up-to-date in the country. GasBuddy data is accessible at http://prices.GasBuddy.com.