Virginia has joined the $4 gasoline club.

The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in Virginia yesterday reached a record high of $4 a gallon, joining drivers in 38 other states and the District of Columbia who currently pay that amount or more, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.

The scales tipped as prices went up 1 cent from Friday's statewide average of $3.99.

The average price in the Richmond area is just behind the state's at $3.99 -- also a record -- compared with $2.81 at the same time last year.

That was high enough to put a wrench in long holiday weekend plans for some.

"I wanted to take a trip down to North Carolina, and I can't go because gas is so bad," 47-year-old Richmonder Ken Pollard said yesterday while filling up his pickup. "It will be $5 before the end of the summer."

Cash Profit, 38, of Richmond agreed, saying the outlook seemed grim.

"It will probably go to six, seven dollars in the next two or three years," he predicted.

Virginians are now paying on average nearly 10 cents more for a gallon of gas than at this time a month ago and $1.17 more than this time last year.

Motorists in the Richmond area can still get gasoline for less than the average price per gallon.

For instance, a Valero station on the 6200 block of Midlothian Turnpike in South Richmond had the lowest price in the area yesterday at $3.85 a gallon, according to GasBuddy.com, a Web site tracking gas prices as reported by consumers.

On the other side of the fence, a Shell station in the 9900 block of Brook Road in northern Henrico County charged $4.25 a gallon, according to the Web site.

The steadily rising prices are the direct result of crude oil prices headed in the same direction. Crude closed at a record high of $145.29 on Thursday, meaning it has roughly doubled in price compared with a year ago.

Nationally, gas prices average $4.10 a gallon, compared with $2.95 a gallon at the same time a year ago.

"The higher prices are being driven by a continuing sense that global oil output is barely keeping up with demand and the U.S. dollar will stay weak, as well as the ongoing tension in the Middle East," said Windy VanCuren, spokeswoman for AAA Mid-Atlantic. "As nothing seems to alleviate the high price of oil, it looks as if there will no relief for motorists this holiday weekend."

Steven Uphoff, owner of the Uppy's Convenience Stores chain, said the painful process amounts to gouging by speculators.

"I believe personally, having been in this industry for 30 years, the price is being manipulated by commodity traders," he said.

"The commodity industry is not well-monitored, and they are artificially manipulating the cost of crude, which is driving the cost up, and it's not right," Uphoff said. "If absolute supply and demand was to take place, and the reason for the cost to have more than doubled in the last 12 months was in fact due to supply shortages, wouldn't we, as suppliers of the fuel, be having run-outs across this country in terminals everywhere? Do you know how many run-outs we've had? Zero. Something is wrong."

To help ease the pain and attract business, Uppy's teamed up with Ukrop's Super Markets Inc. last week to give discounts on the price of gas at its stations for Ukrop's Valued Customer card users.

For every $50 spent on groceries at Ukrop's stores when using the chain's loyalty card, customers get 10 cents per gallon off their gasoline purchases at 16 area Uppy's locations.

The discounts are good for customers buying up to 20 gallons of gas and for up to 90 days from the grocery purchase.

"The results have been very positive," Uphoff said. "The customers see the real value, and they're extremely excited. It's almost like a frenzy."

But Kevin Hornberger, 49, of Goochland County offered a simple solution.

"All we got to do is slow down," he said. "If people drove the speed limit, you'd stop at the pump less. The speed limit is 65, not 80 -- it's common sense."
Contact Wesley P. Hester at (804) 649-6976 or whester@timesdispatch.com.

Staff writer Sarah Alfaham contributed to this report.