Automobile Club of Southern California's Weekend Gas Watch; Decline in Gas Prices Accelerates; Southern California Price Relief Lags Behind the Rest of the Nation

    LOS ANGELES--July 6, 2001--Gas price decreases are gaining momentum in Southern California, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California's Weekend Gas Watch, but the region is still far behind the nation in gas price relief.
    The average price of a gallon of regular unleaded self-serve fuel in Southern California dropped faster during the week ending July 6 than any previous week. Prices have been going down for six straight weeks. Gas prices peaked throughout most of the Southland on May 25.
    Prices fell by 3.6 cents per gallon in the Los Angeles-Long Beach reporting area. The decline was 2.1 cents in San Diego and 2.9 cents in the Central Coast areas. Las Vegas motorists saw a drop in prices of 3.2 cents, while the Phoenix-Mesa, Ariz. area saw a decline of 2.8 cents. Since May 25, when the record of $2.036 was set in the Los Angeles-Long Beach area, the average price of self-serve regular has dropped 13.1 cents per gallon in Southern California. The Weekend Gas Watch monitors the average price of gasoline at popular destinations for motoring trips.
    "Nationally, the average price of self-serve unleaded gasoline is 15.2 cents per gallon less than last year," said Auto Club spokesperson Carol Thorp. "While Southland prices also are declining, motorists in the L.A. metro area still are paying 11.2 cents more than last year. We hope this situation will correct itself in coming weeks."

Average prices as of 12:01 a.m. July 6.

Area                 Regular   Change from           Record Price
                               last week

Los Angeles-Long 
Beach               $1.905    -3.6 cents             $2.036 (set 5/25)

San Diego           $1.952    -2.1 cents             $2.025 (5/29)

Santa Barbara-
Santa Maria-Lompoc  $1.947    -2.9 cents             $2.069 (5/16)

Las Vegas           $1.656    -3.2 cents             $1.885 (3/27/00)

Phoenix-Mesa        $1.609    -2.8 cents             $1.720 (5/30)