Auto Club: Gas Prices Drop Quickly For Fifth Straight Week, Just In Time For July Fourth Trips

As a record number of Southern Californians fill up for their Independence Day trips, they will be paying about 60 to 80 cents less per gallon than they did ahead of the Memorial Day holiday after five straight weeks of gas price drops, according to the Auto Club's Weekend Gas Watch. Today's statewide average for a gallon of regular gasoline is $5.50, which is 14 cents less than last week and 86 cents higher than at this time last year. The national average is $3.91, which is eight cents lower than last week and 69 cents higher than on this date last year.

The average price of self-serve regular gasoline in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area is $5.50 per gallon, 14 cents lower than last week and 88 cents higher than a year ago. In San Diego, the average price is $5.56, which is 12 cents lower than last week and 89 cents higher than this time last year.

On the Central Coast, the average price is $5.59, down nine cents from last week and $1.01 higher than a year ago. In Riverside, the average price per gallon is $5.34, 13 cents lower than last week and 88 cents higher than a year ago. In Bakersfield, the $5.70 average is 13 cents lower than last week and $1.12 higher than one year ago.

"The 5.48 million Southern Californians expected to head out for vacations during the Independence Day holiday will have some relief at the pump, but it will still be the second most expensive July Fourth holiday for gasoline," said Auto Club spokesperson Kandace Redd. "In 2022 before the July Fourth holiday, drivers were paying $6.30 to $6.40 a gallon because of supply issues related to the Russia-Ukraine war."

The Weekend Gas Watch monitors the average price of gasoline. As of 9 a.m. on June 25, averages are: