Bargain-basement gas a thing of the past as higher demand, production cuts push up prices

Friday, March 29th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

SAN DIEGO (AP) _ Caps on oil production and the traditional spring rise in gasoline demand have pushed up prices at the pump 23 cents per gallon over the last month _ the most dramatic change in more than a decade.

The jump also is attributed to the bargain gas prices that prevailed in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, which hampered travel and slowed the economy. In some areas, gas was selling for less than $1 a gallon after the attacks.

``Now that the economy has started to recover, and we're starting to head into the summer driving season, the industry is really having to come from behind a little bit,'' AAA spokesman Geoff Sundstrom said in Orlando, Fla.

The average price for unleaded gas on Thursday was $1.35, according to a AAA national survey.

Crude oil prices have risen to about $25 a gallon since December, when OPEC decided the $20-a-barrel price they were earning then was too low, said Douglas MacIntyre, senior oil market analyst with the Energy Information Administration.

Every $1 increase in the price of a barrel of crude oil translates into a per-gallon hike of about 2.5 cents, he said. Based on current trends, motorists should expect to see per-gallon prices rise another 5 cents to 15 cents over the next several weeks, he said.

``It hits the pocket book,'' 36-year-old Cindy Trujillo said as she pumped gas Thursday in Denver, adding she recently switched from a pickup truck to a fuel-friendly Geo Metro. ''$20 to $10 makes a big difference.''

The four-week leap in gas prices is the sharpest seen by the Energy Information Administration, the statistical branch of the Department of Energy, since it began keeping records in 1990.

Prices still are below the average of March 2001, when it was $1.43 due largely to the then-strong economy.

``It went down so low, we had a bonus there for awhile,'' said Vesper Gibbs Barnes, a Boston attorney who dropped her car off at a Mobile station. ``I guess I'll keep driving everywhere. I have to deal with it.''

Californians, who shoulder the added costs of reformulated gasoline mandated by pollution restrictions, are facing the highest prices in the continental United States. Bay Area motorists have seen average prices rise to $1.68 from $1.42 a month ago.

Lisa Alcantara of Pacifica pumped $1.89-per-gallon premium gas into her Lexus SUV in San Francisco.

``It's crazy,'' she said. ``I just have to get in my car and go and not think about it. ... There is not a whole lot you can do. We all need gas.''

David Underwood, an Atlanta electrician who puts about 24,000 miles on his pickup truck each year, passes the added costs on to his customers.

``It seems like it was less than a dollar a gallon not that long ago,'' he said. ``It seems like it's gone up real fast.''

But cab drivers in many areas are unable to pass on the costs due to government control of their rates. ``It's very difficult for us,'' Yellow Cab General Manager Rebecca Escobar said in El Paso. Rising prices ``cut directly into their gross profit.''

Said one San Diego taxi driver who gave only his last name, Contreras: ''$5 less for me is five less hamburgers for my kids.''

Exactly how far prices will climb is uncertain, said Carol Thorp, spokeswoman for the Auto Club of Southern California. Perhaps Americans who canceled travel plans last year due to high gas prices or Sept. 11 will feel the urge to hit the highways this year, she noted.

``This summer is a question mark at the moment,'' Thorp said. ``Anyone who tells you they can predict that is not correct.''

John Young of St. Louis grumbled about the climbing prices as he filled up his minivan in Chicago after a family vacation.

``It's outrageous,'' Young said. ``If you look at the price of wholesale gas, it's pretty much stayed the same. It's all obviously to take advantage of spring break.''

The price hike had commuters in warm locales looking to more fuel-efficient alternatives.

Antonio Solares, 26, has to fill up his 1995 Ford Escort every other day for the commute between his home in Tijuana, Mexico, and his job in northern San Diego.

``I'm thinking of getting a motorcycle _ seriously,'' Solares said at a gas station near the border.

In Miami, William Morales was unfazed as his pumped $1 of gas into his scooter.

``They can raise the price 200 times, and it doesn't matter to me,'' he said. ``This doesn't bother me at all.''