Chicago drivers – At some of the priciest gas stations in Chicago, drivers say they’ve stopped comparing prices—while food costs keep climbing and federal inflation data shows the squeeze is spreading.
When Alejandro Vasquez rolled into Old Town Shell on Thursday morning, he wasn’t hunting for a bargain. His Toyota Prius was simply out of gas, and the station at 130 W. North Ave. was charging $5.79 a gallon for regular—one of the highest prices in the city, according to data from GasBuddy.
Vasquez, 29, earns extra cash delivering groceries. But after months of climbing fuel costs, he said he’s stopped looking at the numbers. He and a friend talked about it, he said, and they treat the cost “kind of like a phone bill.”
“[We] don’t even look at it. What else am I gonna do?” Vasquez said.
Across the Chicago metro area, the average price for a gallon of regular had been around $4 just a few months earlier, GasBuddy data shows. By Thursday, the average was $4.52. The region’s record-high price was $6.07 in 2022, when the figure was driven largely by the war in Ukraine.
Vasquez said he sees a pattern in where the highest prices show up. “It is funny when you notice [gas prices]. I think when they get more predatory is it’s in places where there’s no gas stations,” he said. “So they know that you’re stopping because you have to.”
Just a short distance away, a BP station at 1647 N. La Salle Dr. was also listed at $5.79 for regular gas. At that pump, Reggie Russell, 40, said he doesn’t spend much time thinking about prices anymore—even as he has a habit of crossing state lines for cheaper fuel.
Russell, an Uber driver, typically travels to Indiana when he can. On Thursday, GasBuddy showed prices in Indiana averaging $3.38. Still, he called what’s happening in Chicago exhausting.
“Oh Lord, there’s nothing else to say about gas prices,” Russell said.
He described how quickly the cost can swallow what used to be a manageable fill-up. It used to take about $20 to fill his Dodge Caravan. Now he said it’s roughly double—around $40—after filling up.
After Thursday’s stop, Russell planned to head to a rideshare pickup to start the day.
For Lia Montelongo, 51, the rising price tag isn’t something she tries to solve. She’s an Equinox fitness instructor, model and actress, and she said she notices higher gas prices but doesn’t lose sleep over them.
“I really don’t care about the gas prices,” Montelongo said. “I notice the higher prices, but I don’t care. I have to drive so it’s like I’ve got to just suit up and show up.”
Montelongo lives in Mokena, a southwest suburb, and fills up a couple times a week. She said she stops where it’s convenient, and especially when it’s on her route home.
“The only reason why I do stop here is because it’s on my way to get home,” she said. “It’s like I know I’m safe. I’m gonna jump on the Lake Shore Drive and go home.”
The way drivers talked about gas in Chicago—resigned, practical, and no longer shopping around—matches a broader economic squeeze. Rising food costs are adding to the strain, even as inflation remains elevated.
Last month, inflation hit its highest level in three years, according to Labor Department figures released Wednesday. Consumer prices rose 4.2% in May from a year earlier, up from 3.8% in April. Prices rose for the third straight month. On a monthly basis, prices increased 0.5% in May, after 0.6% gains in April and 0.9% in March.
Gas prices helped drive the latest reading. GasBuddy data shows that nationally prices were at $4.08, up by 96 cents from last year’s average of $3.12. The monthly average had fallen about 42 cents from last month, when it averaged $4.50. Still, the overall pressure remains.
Gas prices rose in May, the article notes, because Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz choked off about a fifth of the world’s oil supply.
For Chicago residents already working through fuel costs, the next hit is often food. Higher diesel fuel has lifted shipping costs. and companies like UPS and FedEx added fuel surcharges in the past couple of months—costs that are likely to show up at grocery stores. Grocery prices jumped 0.7% in April and were 2.9% higher than a year ago.
In Chicago. a check of 35 common grocery items last week at four stores found prices ticking up everywhere. especially at Walmart. Between Feb. 3 and June 2—about three weeks before the U.S. and Israel’s attack on Iran—the shelf price of 15 items rose at Walmart. The list included milk. butter. vegetables. meats including ground beef. bacon. hot dogs and chicken nuggets. as well as coffee. orange juice. Oreo cookies and peanut M’s. Only two items decreased in price: an avocado and Garnier Fructis shampoo.
At Target, shelf prices for 11 items increased and five went down. Items rising in price included milk, butter, onions, avocado, romaine lettuce, bacon and hot dogs.
At Jewel, six items increased while one, Degree men’s antiperspirant, declined. At Mariano’s, seven items went up while seven went down.
Across the four stores, milk, romaine lettuce and chicken nuggets saw the most widespread increases, with each rising at three stores over the past three months. Most increases were around 50 cents.
Other items also moved higher at multiple locations. including ground beef. bacon. hot dogs. butter. ice cream. avocado. onions. peanut M’s. Kraft mac and cheese and Cascade dish detergent—each rising at two stores. Many jumps were around 50 cents or 60 cents. which amounted to about a 10% increase for a package of Nathan’s Famous bun-length hot dogs.
The pressure builds on price hikes that began after the November 2024 election. Those increases have been tied to multiple factors, including sweeping tariffs, drought and, more recently, the Iran war. After the Iran war made oil and gas more expensive. the ripple reached everything from the cost of fertilizer to transportation.
Illinois also faces gas prices that often run higher than the national average. The article notes that Illinois has the second-highest taxes on gas in the country. according to Illinois Policy. with five states—including Illinois—having a motor fuel tax. The revenue from the tax helps support and build Illinois roads and highways.
On July 1, Illinois drivers are scheduled to face an annual gas tax hike. But Gov. JB Pritzker’s office said in a news release on June 1 that the gas tax hike would be suspended for six months because families are facing “higher costs driven by economic uncertainty and rising energy prices.”
Even with those policy changes, the article underscores that prices can still vary from station to station. The U.S. Energy Information Administration attributes differences to factors such as distance from supply, supply disruptions, retail competition and operating costs. Gas is often most expensive in areas with fewer gas stations. and refinery shutdowns and unplanned maintenance can also raise prices at the pump.
Gas stations. often independently owned. typically price fuel based on replacement costs or what the next shipment of fuel will cost. according to the National Association of Convenience Stores. Retailers can set fuel prices within reason. and Chicago drivers can report suspected price gouging to the city’s Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection.
For drivers like Vasquez and Russell, the end result is the same: a day built around getting where they need to go, not chasing lower prices. And as grocery bills rise alongside gas, the choice they make at the pump—stop checking, just fill up—feels less like convenience and more like surrender.
Chicago gas prices inflation GasBuddy grocery prices Old Town Shell BP La Salle Illinois gas tax JB Pritzker food costs