EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. (AP) -- Motorists rushed to fill up their tanks Thursday, forming long lines at many service stations on New Jersey's tolls roads. Week-old prices and a low gas tax made for some of the cheapest gas in the country.
The lines of cars included many with out-of-state license plates taking advantage of the $3.17 per gallon price ahead of a 7 a.m. hike Friday.
LISTEN: NJ Turnpike's Joe Orlando on the gas rush 
Thursday's national average was $3.56 per gallon.
``It looks like Yankees playoff tickets are on sale,'' Turnpike Authority spokesman Joe Orlando said of the lines that had formed at many stations.
The state's toll road contract only allows stations to raise prices once a week, Orlando said. He said the price would go up 22 cents a gallon Friday morning.
``I plan to use as much New Jersey gas as possible on this trip,'' said Mark Steller of Lancaster, Pa., who filled up at a Turnpike rest stop on a trip to JFK International Airport. ``I'll fill it up again on the way back, just to top it off.''
``I'm amazed,'' said Tom Eich of Westchester, N.Y., who was filling a large luxury car with premium gas. ``I just paid $4.30 per gallon at a little station on the West Side. It's pretty outrageous.''
That fill-up cost $94. This one saved more than $20 by comparison.
Anthony Bates of Douglasville, Ga., found sweet relief at a Turnpike pump in the middle of a one-man road trip in his Ford Expedition.
``Tell you what, this is the best price on gas from Georgia to this point,'' Bates said, taking out his cellphone camera. ``I'm taking a picture to send it home.''
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