Average US gas prices top $4.50 a gallon, the highest in nearly 4 years

The average price for gas across the U.S. surpassed $4.50 a gallon on Tuesday, the highest it's been in nearly four years.

As the war in Iran drags on, and the Strait of Hormuz, the critical channel for oil and international trade, remains choked off, drivers in the U.S. are feeling pain at the pump.

The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas across the country jumped to $4.51 on Tuesday, the highest it's been since July 17, 2022, according to GasBuddy, a company that helps consumers find the cheapest gas.

Patrick DeHaan, the head petroleum analyst for GasBuddy, said he expects gas prices to keep rising in the absence of a peace deal to end the war.

"U.S. gasoline inventories are already at multi-year seasonal lows, which means prices will face even more upward pressure," DeHaan said.

The cost of gas nationwide is up 21 cents a gallon since last Thursday, and has risen $1.54 a gallon since the war in Iran began on Feb. 28, according to GasBuddy.

In an attempt to break the bottleneck in the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. Central Command forces launched "Project Freedom" on Sunday to help guide commercial ships through the strait.

The new attempt to open the strait comes after President Donald Trump ordered a blockade of Iranian ports along the strait in early April.

Gen. Dan Caine said during a press briefing on Tuesday that since a ceasefire went into effect in early April, Iranian military forces have fired on commercial vessels trying to get through the strait nine times and have seized two container ships. Caine said U.S. forces have also been attacked 10 times.

During the press briefing, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sent a message to Iran, saying, "Let innocent ships pass freely" through the strait or else suffer the consequences.

"We're not looking for a fight," Hegseth said. "But Iran also cannot be allowed to block innocent countries and their goods from an international waterway."