PITTSBURGH — At the start of the busy summer driving season, gas prices in Western Pennsylvania this week are holding at $2.636 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

Elsewhere across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast region, growing demand for gasoline pressured pump prices higher. At $2.58, Pennsylvania is on the list of the top 10 most expensive gasoline prices in the country.

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in Bradford is $2.572; while the highest in the region was in Jeannette with $2.702 and the lowest was in Sharon at $2.454.

Tuesday’s national average was $2.37 — one cent more than a week ago, two cents more than a month ago and five cents more than a year ago. Rising gasoline demand has resulted in dropping gasoline inventories across the country, according to the latest Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) report. Last week, U.S. demand for gasoline jumped to the highest level this year, while inventories dropped by 800,000 barrels. If the trend continues, consumers can expect to see summer gasoline prices potentially return to the high prices seen in April, when the national average for a gallon of gasoline was $2.42.