Drivers are often used to seeing gas prices rise prior to a holiday.
But according to AAA, the opposite is the case for Independence Day as prices nationally and in Arizona are down substantially compared to a year ago.
Julian Paredes is with the Arizona branch of the agency and credited a weak oil market. “Any price reductions during the summer, it’s relatively notable just because this is around the time when gas prices [historically] would be going up. So, the fact that they’re going down is definitely a good sign and good for drivers everywhere,” he said.
The average price for regular grade gas in Arizona is $3.86 per gallon. That's a drop of $0.16 from last week, but still about 30 cents higher than the national average of $3.54.
The cheapest gas in the state is in Graham County at $3.26.
In Maricopa County, the average is $4.04.
Last year, the national average was $4.86 and the state average was $5.26.
