Head out on the highway: Carolinas gas cheapest in 12 years

Almost 90 percent of gas stations in SC are selling fuel for under $2 per gallon today.

AAA Texas say the national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded is at $2.19, which is three cents less than last week and 56 cents less per gallon than a year ago.

Gas prices in both states are down about 16 cents a gallon from a year ago. USA crude oil supplies are about 13 percent higher than a year ago.

Current prices are also a far cry from eight years ago, when the priceat the pump reached as high as $4.08 per gallon in MA.

“It does make a difference”, said Chris Carroll, a home remodeler from Lehigh Acres, Fla., when asked about regular unleaded gas prices hovering around $2 a gallon as he filled up.

Even with the peak travel season in full swing, gasoline prices are stuck in reverse.

Prices around the country are still hovering around record lows for this time of year.

Motorists across the Carolinas are heading out on the highway this summer with gas price the lowest they have been in July in a dozen years. In addition, regional prices could increase due to refinery problems, production cuts, stronger than anticipated demand or hurricanes that impact distribution and production.

“Barring those events”, he said, “we expect prices to decline, and it’s conceivable we’d see prices match the lows we saw”. Prices this morning had headed lower and were briefly below $45 per barrel.