It's time to use the last few weeks of summer vacation for some traveling as gasoline prices in the United States continue to decline.
The overall national average of a gallon of gas has dropped 13 cents in the past week, and there are little signs it isn't going to continue to drop, which is good news for those making summer trips.
The report from GasBuddy details prices are likely to keep dropping as Labor Day weekend approaches, a holiday weekend some analysts believe gas prices will be at their lowest nationwide.
"Oil prices last week dropped to $95/bbl briefly before rising the next day back to $97/bbl, but the important factor is that prices remain under triple digits. For motorists, we're nearing the point that gasoline demand drops- after Labor Day- and also the upcoming switch back to cheaper winter gasoline will also put downward pressure on prices in mid-September," says GasBuddy.com Senior Petroleum Analyst Patrick DeHaan."
While the company did not rule out a short-term increase, DeHaan believes as September approaches a spike is unlikely.
"It won't be long before we'll start to see a few cities seeing averages under $3 a gallon: areas of Tennessee and South Carolina are already getting close," DeHaan said.
Over the past few months, prices of gas has dropped across the country, making road trips a bit easier on families, Tech Times reports.
The San Francisco Bay Area remains the top of the country's pricing, with an average gallon of gas hovering at the $4 range. The midwest of the U.S. remains the cheapest, and GasBuddy and AAA both believe that in some cities the price could drop below $3 a gallon in the next few weeks.
One of the main reasons for the drops in prices has been the stabilization of crude from troubled spots around the world, with AAA in April noting that Iraq and Libya are seeing a reduction in turmoil around petroleum refineries and that has played a major role in U.S. prices dropping.
"Crude prices have dropped in reaction to Libya having sizably hiked its oil production, and because Iraq's oil output has not been smashed by violence and turmoil there," said Trilby Lundberg, publisher of the AAA survey.
For now, Americans are looking to take advantage of the lower prices as they make for final trips across the country before the fall semester begins.
