The jump in prices can be blamed partly on Tropical Storm Isaac brewing in the Gulf and partly on the Labor Day holiday.
The Chicago may be far from the path of Isaac, but it is not immune from the impact.
"Being a student, I hate filling up $80 for a full tank of gas," said Bianca Ladipo," but got to do what you got to do, right?"
A fill up will be even more pricey in the coming days. With Isaac threatening to disrupt the supply of gasoline, companies are anticipating the slow down and will likely inflate prices to slow the demand.
"The oil companies and gas stations are always looking for a reason to increase the price per gallon," said Maciek Nowak of the Loyola University School of Business. "So if there is a natural disaster -- and you often see prices going up around the holidays."
"Retail prices haven't really moved up a whole lot yet," said GasBuddy.com's Patrick DeHaan. "The worst is set to come."
In addition to the hurricane, there is word a local refinery is having problems, and this time of year, prices already tend to rise with the rise in demand for Labor Day travel.
