COLUMBUS (WCMH) – Despite a national trend of rising gas prices, the cost of a gallon of gasoline took another dip in the Columbus area.
After gas prices jumped nearly a quarter per gallon to begin the month of March, the cost for a gallon of gas dipped twice, first by 4.5 cents, and then again last week by another 12.3 cents to $3.29 per gallon, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 500 stations.
The current price is 5.3 cents per gallon lower than one month ago and 1.6 cents higher than this time one year ago.
The cheapest gas station in the Columbus area was priced at $2.99 a gallon, while the most expensive was $3.49, a difference of 50 cents per gallon. In Ohio, the average price of gas also dropped by 14.0 cents from one week ago, averaging out at $3.20, while nationally, gas prices rose 4.4 cents to $3.44 per gallon.
According to Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, the relief in the Midwest can be attributed to completed maintenance at a refinery in Indiana, while Nationally the increase is standard as spring approaches.
“Most Americans continued to see average gasoline prices march higher last week. The reason is the season: gasoline demand is rising as more Americans are getting out, combined with the summer gasoline switchover, which is well underway,” he said. “In some positive news for Midwest motorists, the BP refinery in Whiting, Indiana that can process 440,000 barrels of oil per day is finally back to normal operations for the first time since an electrical failure happened in early February.”
