Sep. 3—Looking to take one last trip for Labor Day weekend? You will be feeling some pain at the gas pump.

Gas prices in Berks County have settled to averages above $3 per gallon as demand increased with a sharp rise in summer travel. In fact, GasBuddy, which monitors gas prices across the country, said Labor Day weekend prices will be the highest since 2014. It expects the national average to be $3.20 per gallon, which is almost a dollar more than a year ago.

The average price for gas in Berks County on Friday morning was $3.28, ranging from $3.16 to $3.29 per gallon. For Labor Day 2020, the average was $2.54 in Berks.

Prices had been trending slowly downward in recent weeks because of the end of summer vacation for students and the persistent coronavirus pandemic that has delayed a return to the office for many workers.

Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy, said relief could soon be coming.

"As demand for gasoline has begun to cool with schools reopening and vacation season wrapping up, we've seen a small amount of relief at the pump just in time for Labor Day," De Haan said in a statement. "While COVID continues to have a leading role in gasoline demand and companies plan their return to office, prices may be less predictable than normal. However, seasonality will persist, and that means less gasoline demand as we progress through fall and into winter, and cost savings from the switch back to cheaper winter gasoline in mid-September. We should see more relief at the pump coming the deeper into fall we go."

The wild card for the weekend will be the fallout from Hurricane Ida, which struck the Gulf Coast and its string of oil refineries on Sunday and hit Berks and the Northeast on Wednesday. The storm knocked out power for much of southern Louisiana and Mississippi and took about 13% of oil capacity offline, according to AAA.

"Until the power is restored, it's too early to know the full impact of any damage Ida caused on the oil and gas industry, but motorists regionally can expect price fluctuations leading into Labor Day weekend," said Jeanette McGee, AAA spokeswoman in a statement. "Typically, a category 4 storm could mean three-plus weeks before refineries are back to normal operations, while offshore production is more likely to resume this week."

A day after Ida hit the coast, AAA said the national average price went up a penny to $3.15, after falling 2 cents on Sunday, which was the cheapest price since early July.

As a precautionary measure, Colonial Pipeline announced last Sunday that it shut down two main lines that run from Houston to Greensboro, N.C. The company conducted an infrastructure inspection after the storm and the pipeline was back to full service Thursday. AAA said that gas prices nationally, especially in the southeast and east coast, will see minimal impact at the pump if the pipeline is down for a matter of hours versus days.

Average gas prices in Berks for Labor Day weekend

2021: $3.28

2020: $2.54

2019: $2.69

2018: $2.98

2017: $2.59

2016: $2.28

2015: $2.41

2014: $3.33

2013: $3.56

2012: $3.75

2011: $3.46

Source: GasBuddy