California gasoline prices moved down – or up -- by less than half a penny in most areas over the past week, according to price surveys Friday.
“It’s good news that … gas prices are no longer rising or are rising very little, but we are still paying prices that are 50 to 70 cents higher than during the summers of 2006 and 2010, although we are well below the $4.50-a-gallon prices of summer 2008,” says Jeffrey Spring, a spokesman for the Automobile Club of Southern California.
The nation’s average price for a gallon of gas on July 29 is $3.710, according to the Triple A. That’s nearly a dollar higher than one year ago when the average was $2.744.
California’s average is now $3.817 – only the eighth highest in the nation, one of the lowest rankings for California in years. It is, however, 66.7 cents higher than a year ago on this date, the AAA says.
Following are the Central Valley average prices for Friday, July 29, driving from south to north, as reported by the American Automobile Association with last week’s (July 22) averages in parentheses and [July 15] prices in brackets:
• Bakersfield, $3.822 ($3.822) [$3.810]
• Visalia-Porterville, $3.809 ($3.787) [$3.782]
• Fresno, $3.788 ($3.774) [$3.738]
• Merced, $3.775 ($3.775) [$3.745]
• Modesto, $3.745 ($3.724) [$3.681]
• Stockton-Lodi, $3.754 ($3.742) [$3.705]
• Sacramento, $3.768 ($3.761) [$3.723]
• Yolo, $3.771 ($3.755) [$3.724]
• Yuba City, $3.744 ($3.745) [$3.723]
• Chico, $3.770 ($3.755) [$3.732]
The market average price of self-serve regular gasoline in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area on July 29 is $3.819, which is one-tenth of a penny less than last Friday, the AAA says. In San Diego, it is $3.820, which is also one-tenth of a cent lower than last week, according to the AAA’s figures.
The same tiny fluctuations in price are seen in San Francisco, which continues to boast California’s highest average price for a gallon of gas. The AAA says the July 29 average is $3.903, an increase of three-tenths of a cent in a week.
Ay $3.744, Yuba City’s average is California’s lowest on July 29, according to the Auto Club.
What might be the lowest pump price in California on July 29 is found at a gas station in Marina where the price is $3.28 per gallon, according to the website GasBuddy.com.
There’s another treat awaiting visitors to Yosemite National Park – the opportunity to shell out for the highest-priced gas in California on July 29. GasBuddy says it’s spotted $4.89 per gallon for regular being charged by a gas station in El Portal, just outside the popular national park.
The nation’s lowest price on July 29 is a cash price of $3.17 per gallon, found at a gas station in suburban Tucson, Ariz., according to the website GasBuddy.com.
Methodologies
GasBuddy bases its figures on reports from volunteer “price spotters” reporting specific locations in the U.S. and Canada. They are not independently confirmed.
The AAA’s prices are market averages for self-serve regular grade (87 octane) gasoline. They are calculated daily from credit card purchases and compiled by the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express.
Not every station is surveyed and not every market is included in either report. Both price surveys note that there can be wide variations within any market.
Gasoline prices throughout California are higher than the national average and usually among the highest in the nation. That is due in part to taxes and a state law mandating a special blend of fuel to reduce polluting emissions.
