Auto Club: Gas Prices Down For Fifth Straight Week

As a record number of Southern Californians prepare for end-of-year getaways, dropping gas prices are continuing to help their budgets, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California's Weekend Gas Watch. The retail statewide average is $3.67 a gallon for regular unleaded, which is eight cents lower than last week.
 
The average price of self-serve regular gasoline in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area is $3.71 per gallon, which is down eight cents from last week, 36 cents lower than a month ago, and 26 cents higher than last year. In San Diego, the average price is $3.70, which is eight cents less than last Thursday, 32 cents less than last month, and 28 cents higher than last year. On the Central Coast, the average price is $3.81, which is seven cents lower than last week, 32 cents lower than last month, and 35 cents higher than last year. In Riverside, the average per-gallon price is $3.61, which is nine cents lower than last week, 38 cents lower than last month, and 29 cents higher than last year. In San Bernardino, the $3.68 average price is eight cents lower than last week, 34 cents lower than last month, and 29 cents higher than a year ago today.

“A few more gas stations in Southern California have posted prices below $3.20 a gallon, and it’s likely we could see some station prices below $3 before the end of the year,” said Auto Club spokesman Jeffrey Spring. “The nine million Southern Californians expected to take end-of-year holiday trips will pay gas prices that are 25 to 30 cents higher than this time last year.”

The Weekend Gas Watch monitors the average price of gasoline. As of 9 a.m. on Dec. 12, averages are: