Only two months into 2018 and already we’ve seen an unexpected rise in gas prices all across California. Particularly here in San Diego, the average person including teens spend around $120 a month on gas according to The San Diego Union Tribune. This New Years we managed to reach an all time high which was previously set in 2014, when the price for a gallon was $3.69. Now two months into the year and prices have elevated up to $5.00 a gallon. All of this is stemmed from the gas tax passed by the legislature last year and  signed into law by governor Jerry Brown. The gas tax law basically approves for gas prices to increase 12 cents a gallon due to taxes applied on transportation and less harmful gas. The average gas price in San Diego is 5.2 cents lower than it was in January however it is also 4.2 cents more than just one week ago. San Diego now holds a record for holding prices at around 2.2 cents higher than the total state average.

           This is just the start of a gas hike and it is most likely that gas prices will be going up and not decreasing any time soon. It also means that for students, who drive or get either Uber or Lyft to school, would need to spend a few extra dollars everyday in order to get here. As well as the transportation fees, the increase of prices force  people to settle for the cheaper gas, unaware of the fact that they’re adding to the environmental pollution. Gas prices have always been a problem that just doesn’t seem to go away and only comes back stronger.

Some advice to take into consideration is to simply just shop around for the most affordable prices and pump for about how much gas you’d need that week considering that gas prices at the moment are unexpected and could rise at any moment. Here at Hoover, many students have already began driving and are now affected by the increasing gas prices. It makes it harder for teens, who are not employed or work part-time jobs during the weekend, to pay for their transportation. However we hope to soon see a drop in prices but for now they continue to be an issue. Ultimately this is one of the first adulting problems that teens are exposed to while still in high school.