Relief at the pump: California gas prices dip below $6 a gallon

Melissa Hernandez
·1 min read
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Azusa, CA, Tuesday, March 22, 2022 - Jorge Garcia fills up for $68 at Costco, where regular grade costs $5.39 per gallon. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
Jorge Garcia fills up his car with gas at the Costco in Azusa. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

What goes up must come down — and that includes California gas prices.

For the first time since May, the average price at California pumps has finally dipped below $6 a gallon, dropping 20 cents since July 7, according to the American Automobile Assn.

The U.S. average dropped to $4.57 a gallon Friday, down 10 cents since Monday.

"The decrease in demand, alongside declining oil prices, has helped to push pump prices down," AAA said in a statement. "As these supply-demand dynamics hold, drivers will likely continue to see price relief at the pump."

And what a relief it is. After soaring as high as $8.05 a gallon in Los Angeles County, gas prices have steadily trickled downward for the last 30 days, reaching $6.02 a gallon Friday, the lowest price since May 16, according to AAA.

Orange County has dipped even lower, with an average of $5.90 a gallon.

Mono County, which sits on the California-Nevada border, has the state's highest average, at $7.05 a gallon, data from AAA shows. Madera and Sacramento counties have the lowest: $5.76.

Although the state's gas prices are markedly higher than last summer, experts see hope for the drop to continue as the price of oil declines.

"Less expensive oil usually means less expensive gas,” AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross said in a statement.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.