NICK GOSNELL Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON — Gas prices continue heading toward the $3 a gallon mark.
"Right now, we're at $3.07 a gallon on average in Kansas, which is the lowest we've been in a while," said Shawn Steward with AAA Kansas. "That's down ten cents in the past week, down 35 cents in the past month. If we go back to last year, we're 32 cents less than where we were a year ago."
"Demand has been typically sliding, as we get into the fall months," Steward said. "That's a normal trend. Sometimes, we'll get into a year that doesn't end up being normal, but this year seems to be trending that way. It also helps that crude oil prices have stayed fairly stable and have fallen."
Prices were a little above $77 a barrel for WTI crude as of Wednesday morning.
"The cost of crude oil makes up 50 to 60 percent of what we see in terms of a price of a gallon of gas," Steward said. "We've definitely seen some downward trending on the crude oil market."
Looking at general trends, if demand continues to slow and crude oil prices stay below $80 a barrel, it is possible that the state could go under $3 a gallon on average. The last time that happened was in January.