The national average price of gasoline has fallen below $2 a gallon for the first time in four years, price-watching service GasBuddy announced Friday.
The last time the U.S. average was $1.99 a gallon was March 23, 2016.
In Pennsylvania, the top 10 lowest prices ranged from $1.55 to $1.79 a gallon on Friday afternoon, GasBuddy reported. That included a Citgo station in New Castle, where the price was reported at $1.77.
In the Pittsburgh area, prices were as low as $1.85 in Allegheny County, $1.87 in Armstrong County, $1.80 in Butler County, $2.19 in Fayette County and $1.99 in Westmoreland County. No price reports were found for Beaver and Washington counties.
GasBuddy is predicting that the national average could get as low as $1.49 per gallon by mid-April, which would be the lowest since 2004. Hundreds of stations could get down to 99-cents per gallon for the first time since the early 2000s.
“This is an unprecedented event. We’re experiencing one of the biggest historical collapses in gas prices, including the Great Recession of 2008,” said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. “World demand for oil has plummeted virtually overnight while domestic demand for gasoline continues to fall off a cliff with more states implementing shelter-in-place orders. Prices will continue to fall in the days ahead with currently no end in sight.”
GasBuddy says an additional drop of 25 to 65 cents a gallon is possible in most states, with West Coast states including California expected to see prices drop 50 cents to $1 a gallon over the next few weeks.
