National average price for gasoline continues to drop, but not in Columbus
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – While the national average price of gasoline continued to tumble last week, the average price in Ohio and Columbus went in the opposite direction.
According to GasBuddy’s survey of 500 stations, the price of a gallon of gasoline rose by 18.1 cents, averaging $3.25 per gallon last week, after coming oh-so-close to dropping to at or below $3 per gallon.
The current price is 8.5 cents higher than one month ago but still 50.9 cents lower than this time one year ago. In Ohio, the average price of gas rose by 8.5 cents to $3.22 per gallon, while nationally, gas prices dropped by 4.6 cents to $3.33 per gallon.
The cheapest gas station in the Columbus area was priced at $2.75 a gallon, while the most expensive was $3.49, a difference of 74 cents per gallon. The highest price in Ohio was $4.45.
Despite the uptick in cost last week, prices could continue to drop in the coming weeks, according to Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.
“Gasoline demand has struggled in recent weeks, falling not only due to the seasonal nature, as Americans drive less as the weather gets colder, but it appears there may be some economic headwinds entering the equation as well." De Haan said.