"I feel sorry for the customers," said Balistrieri, 79, who has been selling gas in San Diego for 50 years. "I don't know how some of them cope with these price rises, especially when they have to buy food and rent. This has been the worst I've seen in a long time."

But there have been worse years. In the 1970s, gasoline was rationed so tightly that drivers had to queue up in long lines, and stations had only enough fuel to stay open a few hours a day.