(CHARLOTTE) -- Gas prices hit four dollars a gallon at some stations in North Carolina on Thursday, and experts say the price is going up. Four bucks is more than the statewide average, but it is expected to be the norm across the state by April.

Tom Crosby of Triple A Carolinas said the energy policies that are being proposed now will not do anything do help prices in the short term. "There's nothing on the horizon that's going to change the way things are unless we make drastic changes and have a long range energy policy," said Crosby.  "It's been a failure of every administration since about the late 1970's.  Republican or Democrat, no one embraces long range energy strategy."

Crosby said if you want to save money now, you should keep your car under 70 miles an hour, use cruise control, and properly inflate your tires.