Puget Sound gas prices keep dropping
Nov 13, 2012, 7:07 AM | Updated: 7:56 am
Puget Sound area gas prices have fallen to some of their lowest levels in recent months, with the South Sound dropping below the national average for the first time in five years. (AP image)
(AP image)
Local drivers are getting a little relief at the pump, as Puget Sound area gas prices dropped again Monday.
In the South Sound, prices fell below the national average for the first time in five years, The News Tribune reports.
Tracking service GasBuddy.com reports the average price for a gallon of unleaded regular is $3.438 in the Tacoma area, while the national average as of Monday was $3.465.
An Arco station on WA-410 and 208th Ave East in Bonney Lake is currently selling unleaded regular for $3.19 a gallon.
In the Seattle area, Arco and Sam’s Club on Grady Way in Renton are both offering unleaded regular for $3.21 a gallon.
Prices are over 60 cents less than the average price just a month ago.
Energy analysts say the fuel shortage sparked by Hurricane Sandy on the East Coast has spiked prices there, raising the national average, while production has increased in the Midwest.
A local trade group says the surplus of oil is pushing prices downward. But Tim Hamilton, executive director of the Automotive United Trades Organization, tells The News Tribune prices are getting close to their bottom.
Washington’s average is now $3.568 a gallon, ranking the state 17th nationwide on the list of state averages from high to low.
