Gas prices are back under $3 a gallon

The price of a gallon of gas has dropped back under $3 a gallon in time for one last road trip of summer over the Labor Day weekend.
 On Monday, the national average price for a gallon of gas was $2.59, while the average cost in Idaho was $2.82.
 One year ago, the average price of gas in Idaho was $3.25 a gallon.
 Gas is cheaper going into the Labor Day weekend in Weiser than it was a few months ago in advance of Memorial Day. Gas was $3.14 to $3.16 around townfor Memorial Day.
 Monday’s price at the pumps in Weiser ranged from $2.80 to $2.88. The four gas retailers in town are usually pretty competitive.
 The AAA Idaho, which tracks gas prices nationally, statewide and in many cities in Idaho, said motorists benefitted from a “perfect storm” this summer of inexpensive crude oil, highly productive refineries and abundant gasoline stocks.
 The result has basically put a lid on gas prices, despite a summer of record holiday travel and skyrocketing fuel demand.
 Millions more Americans were on the road for Memorial Day and Independence Day this year, and for the week ending Aug. 9, the Energy Information Administration recorded U.S. fuel demand at just under 10 million barrels per day, the highest level since the agency began tracking data in 1991.  But so far this summer, none of that appears to matter, according to the AAA.
 “Surprisingly, the summer surge in gas prices was over before it started,” said AAA Idaho public affairs director Matthew Conde.   
 “Idaho is a very busy place in the summertime, as tourists and residents take advantage of the warm weather to embark on a series of road trips across our state. This year has been no exception, but we’ve also had nearly three consecutive months of falling gas prices – something we’re much more likely to see after Labor Day, not before.”
 The AAA said Idaho gas prices are typically among the most expensive in the nation (currently 8th for most expensive fuel), in part because the West Coast and Rockies regions have less competition, more population migration, and fewer refinery additions than other parts of the country.
 Although pump prices could level off or even increase slightly for Labor Day travel, AAA predicts that Idaho gas prices could drop by as much as 15 to 20 cents before Thanksgiving, due to decreased demand and the switch to cheaper-to-produce winter-blend fuel.