Most people were expecting the national average for a gallon of gas to surpass $5 per gallon but for the past five weeks, gas prices have dropped. The estimate for gas prices through the month of September by the U.S. Energy Information Administration were released on Tuesday. The organization said that the prices should remain at $3.79 per gallon on a national average, which is 16 cents lower than the original prediction. It has also been estimated that the price could continue to fall.
“If I were betting in Vegas whether or not gas will be higher or lower on July 4th, I would say lower,” Tom Kloza said. Kloza is the chief oil analyst for the Oil Price Information Service. The average price per gallon for gas in areas such as Alaska, Hawaii and California continue to hover around $4 per gallon. It is expected that gas prices will continue to increase over time since there is a limited amount of oil buried underground across the globe. Kloza did say that gas prices probably will spike during the year, possibly when hurricane season activates.
“The price at the pump, while it’s lower now than it was this time last year, is still high,” said White House Press Secretary Jay Carney. “It still poses a burden for Americans trying to make ends meet. That’s why the president is not going to drop this issue.”
Michael Green, the AAA spokesman, said that drivers will probably return to their old habits as gas prices continue to fall. It was estimated that 87 percent of drivers surveyed in March said they were going to change their travel habits because of rising fuel costs.
“This is good news for drivers, because they don’t have to change their habits,” Green said. “It’s helping consumers and providing welcome relief.”
Dan Lennon, the vice president for marketing and public relations in Branson, Missouri’s Chamber of Commerce, said that 90 percent of the 7.5 million people who visit Branson each year drive to the town. This forces his group to monitor the gas prices closely. Lennon said that with gas prices dropping, he expects crowds in Branson to be higher than the past couple of summers. The Chamber of Commerce surveyed residents earlier in the year, asking what price it would take for them to stop traveling, and the response was $4.69.
“We’ve already been to $4 a gallon in 2008, so it doesn’t have the kind of impact it once did,” he said. “A couple of years ago, the response would have been $3.25.”