Gas prices in one central Indiana county are far above the state average

GREENCASTLE — It is an American instinct to comment on the price of gas, but drivers in Putnam County have a unique reason for their complaints.

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Most gas stations in Greencastle and Putnam County are selling gas at or near $3.19 a gallon. For contrast, GasBuddy reports Indiana's average gas price at $2.93 a gallon, about 25 cents cheaper than Putnam County.

WATCH | Why are gas prices in this Central Indiana county above the state average?

"It's a big difference, it's a lot higher in these smaller towns," said Greencastle resident Michael Mahoney. "I would just like to know why they're higher here than other towns and other cities."

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GasBuddy national analyst Patrick De Haan said he is also confused at Putnam County's price hike compared to surrounding counties.

"If I was a motorist there, I probably wouldn't fill up there because it doesn't seem like stations want to be competitive with each other," De Haan said. "It would draw some questions from me as an analyst knowing how prices work throughout these states. It's rather rare to see all of these stations holding at a pretty high market price."

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Gas prices reached as high as $3.29 per gallon in Putnam County, which was GasBuddy's reported average price in Alaska at the time of this report.

De Haan did not give a definitive explanation for the Putnam County prices, but said it is a local issue with station owners as opposed to a national gas price or supply situation.

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As evidence, he pointed to Indianapolis, where average gas prices hovered around $2.80 per gallon.

"In Indianapolis, prices are 30 cents lower than a month ago," De Haan said. "It's just a big price war across Indianapolis, where some stations are getting wild and aggressive at wanting the lowest price."

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At the time of reporting, GasBuddy's lowest observed price in Putnam County was $2.89 per gallon at the BP station on US 36 and N County Road 725 E near Groveland.