Gas prices dip below $4 a gallon in the Delaware Valley for the first time in months
"It's the first time in six months we have seen gas prices here locally below $4 a gallon since March of this year," AAA said.
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Labor Day drivers are seeing a little relief at the pump as they hit the road once again and head home after the long weekend.
The cost of a regular gallon of gasoline has finally fallen below the $4 mark across the Delaware Valley. It currently stands at $3.99.
In New Jersey, you'll pay $3.81, and Delaware is down to $3.58.
The national average is $3.78
It wasn't very long ago when we were paying record-breaking amounts to fill up the tank as gas prices soared above $5 a gallon.
"It's the first time in six months we have seen gas prices here locally below $4 a gallon since March of this year," said AAA spokesperson Jana Tidwell.
But that doesn't mean gas is cheap.
Even with the price drop, we are still paying on average $0.70 more per gallon as compared to this time last year.
Tidwell says one of the factors that helped turn the tide was a summertime dip in demand.
She says people still traveled this summer, but Americans found ways to limit how much they spent on fuel.
"Summer driving is big," she says. "We often see demand peak, but people adjusted their driving behavior in the summer because of higher gas prices."
Tidwell also says AAA is cautiously optimistic that prices will continue to decrease even as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries announced Monday it plans to cut production by 100,000 barrels a day starting next month.
The factors at play include keeping crude oil from trading above $100 a barrel, the expectation of demand tapering off with the summer vacation season behind us, and the switch to the winter blend of gasoline later this month.
Commuters told Action News it's good that prices have dipped, but there is still no joy in filling up the tank.
"It has impacted income, budgeting, and everything else associated with it. I'm really ticked off," Ray Minnick from Fort Myers, Florida said.
"I have been going to different areas and I do look at prices now. But now it's coming back down and I'm still back to my old self," Aaron Sawyer of Colwyn, Pa. said.
