The long streak of falling gas prices is over with big rise at the pump last week

CHATTANOOGA (WDEF) – It had to end someday.

And “someday” came last week.

GasBuddy.com reports that the price of a gallon of gas rose 5.6 cents last week, pushing the average back up to $1.49 in Chattanooga.

The national average went up almost two cents last week.

Chattanooga was an exception in our region.

Prices continued to drop in Knoxville, ending up a penny cheaper than Chattanooga for the first time in 2016.

Prices were flat in Huntsville, and Tennessee only saw a half cent rise on average.

But it was much worse in the Midwest.

“Many motorists in the Midwest saw an ugly surprise at the gas pumps last week, as prices spiked as high as 23 cents per gallon in one week’s time in places,” said Will Speer, a GasBuddy senior petroleum analyst. “The spike occurred on the back of news that Midwest refineries were reducing production rates due to poor economics. The rest of the U.S. enjoyed another week of declining gas prices. ”

It is expected that prices will begin to rise again this spring, possibly dropping back in late 2016.

Last week, we saw $1.29 prices in Athens, Tennessee according to the GasBuddy survey.

That has slipped up to $1.33 at the Speedway and Murphy USA stations at the I 75 exit.

We’ve got five $1.35 prices in the Chattanooga area (Walmart E. Brainerd, Walmart Shallowford, Sams Club Lee Hwy, Speedway Hickory Valley, Mapco Lee Hwy & Vance)

Ringgold has a $1.35 price at the Costco and $1.38 at the Mapco on Alabama Highway.