Gas prices continued to slide down in the Sunshine State as December began, a study from AAA found.
AAA released a study on Monday which found gas prices averaged $2.44 per gallon in Florida on Sunday, down 2 cents from last week but 26 cents higher than the start of December last year. The national average stood at $2.48 per gallon on Sunday. At this time last year, the national average was at $2.18 per gallon.
Mark Jenkins, a spokesman for AAA and the Auto Club group, noted on Monday that the average price per gallon in Florida has dropped nine cents across the past three weeks.
"Gas prices have been falling in recent weeks, but it has been a slow drip," Jenkins said. "Oil prices are at their highest point of the year, preventing the typical seasonal plunge at the pump. Any strong gains in oil this week should push pump prices higher. However, the overall story this month should be lower gas prices, as demand declines. That's because Americans drive less in the winter due to shorter days and cooler weather."
South Florida continues to have the most expensive gas in the Sunshine State. Drivers in West Palm Beach paid, on average, $2.56 per gallon on Sunday while motorists in Miami saw prices at $2.55 per gallon and the Naples market saw prices at $2.50 per gallon.
Pensacola had the least expensive gas in Florida with an average of $2.36 per gallon followed by Jacksonville and Orlando where prices averaged $2.38 per gallon.
So far in 2017, gas prices in Florida have ranged on average between highs of $2.73 per gallon in September when the state was impacted by hurricanes and a low of $2.13 per gallon in the middle of July.
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