Gas prices in Metro Vancouver have yet again topped the $1.50 mark.

According to GasBuddy.com, most gas stations in the region were charging between $1.499 and $1.519 a litre Friday afternoon.

Prices at the pump also climbed above $1.50 last week, bringing the cost of fuel close to the region's record high of $1.56, set back in August 2013.

Gasbuddy.com analyst Dan McTeague warned that prices could hit a record-breaking $1.60 a litre this summer as a supply shortage caused by several temporary refinery closures in the Pacific Northwest artificially drives up the cost of fuel.

With the Trans Mountain pipeline at capacity, it's currently impossible to bring in more gas from Alberta to meet the Lower Mainland's growing demand, McTeague said.

Increased demand in the summer, the additional four-cent-a-litre cost of producing summer blend gasoline and a looming carbon tax increase are also helping make prices in the $1.50 range the new average, the analyst said.