(The Center Square) – Arkansas has the second lowest gas prices in the country at $3.11 for a regular unleaded gallon of gasoline, second only to its neighbor, Mississippi, at $3.06 a gallon, according to AAA.
The price is two cents lower than last week and the same as this week last year.
The lower cost is good news for Arkansans expected to take a trip over the Memorial Day weekend but the low prices may not last long, according to AAA spokesman Andrew Gross.
Residents in Texarkana pay an average of $3.22 a gallon at the pump, the highest in the state. The cheapest gas is in Hot Springs, where a gallon of regular unleaded costs $3.04.
It’s not good news for other U.S. drivers. The national average is $3.61. California motorists pay the most for a gallon of gas, $5.15, more than $2 more than Arkansans. Washington state has the second highest cost, $4.58.
“Since the pandemic, the summer driving season has not seen a surge in demand, which can push pump prices higher,” Gross said. “So it will be interesting to see if this year bucks that trend. This week’s move by the Biden Administration to sell off the million-barrel Northeast Gasoline Supply Reserve might help stave off any regional pump price surges, but likely won’t move the national average that much.”
AAA predicts 43.8 million Americans will drive 50 miles or more away from home during the weekend, the second highest number since the organization started keeping records in 2005.
