Burlington gas prices drop due to fear of omicron variant

Gas prices dropped by 10.6 cents this past week in the Burlington area, according to GasBuddy, a company that tracks gas prices across the country.

As of Monday, the average per-gallon cost in Burlington was $3.37. The decrease in price was not particular to Burlington, although Burlington's price drop was double the national decline.

The national average price of gas dropped by 5.3 cents in last week and was $3.34 per gallon on Monday. Vermont's average price went down by 4.2 cents last week, now standing at $3.39 per gallon. New Hampshire's average price stands at $3.32 per gallon and the average price in Albany, New York, stands at $3.50 per gallon.

COVID cases: What Vermont leaders are saying about the new COVID-19 omicron variant

Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy, said in a media release Monday that gas prices are dropping across the country because of anxiety over the omicron variant as well as lockdowns in other countries due to the variant, both limiting the number of motorists on roads. De Haan said prices will continue to decline in the coming weeks.

The cheapest station in Burlington was priced at $3.19 per gallon Monday while the most expensive was $3.49 per gallon. Gas is still $1.21 more expensive than last year at this time.

Will tapping the oil reserve lower cost: Analysts are skeptical about impact

Contact Urban Change Reporter Lilly St. Angelo at lstangelo@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @lilly_st_ang

This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Burlington VT gas prices drop over 10 cents due to Omicron fears