Gasoline is at $3.50 per gallon for the first time this summer after a sharp run-up in July.

The price of gas rose 17 cents per gallon, or 5.1 percent this month, as oil rose and drivers burned more fuel on summer road trips. It was the first monthly increase since March, and the biggest gain in any July since auto club AAA started keeping records in 2000.

The average price for gas nationwide hit a high of $3.936 per gallon on April 6 when oil topped $100 per barrel. As the global economy weakened in the spring, oil fell sharply. Gas eventually dropped to $3.326 per gallon on July 2.

On Tuesday, gas rose 1.4 cents to reach an average of $3.50 for the first time since June 19.