Filling up to head home for the holidays this year will leave more jingle in your pocket

Whether you’re going over the river and through the woods for Christmas at grandmother’s house or pulling up to a New Year’s Eve party at the club, you can expect to save a little bit of money on your trip thanks to falling gas prices.

“AAA is forecasting that roughly 104 million Americans will drive to their holiday destinations this year, and they will be greeted with the gift of falling gas prices,” said Andrew Gross, AAA spokesman. “With pump prices falling slowly each day, it is likely that the national average will slide below $3 per gallon by the end of the year.”

Georgia is basically there — a gallon of regular will cost the average Georgia motorist $3.003, according to AAA, better than the national average of about $3.09.

Hawaiians are shelling out the most in the nation at an average price of $4.69 a gallon, and Texans are living large with an average pump price of about $2.64.

Last December, Americans were paying about $3.13 per gallon, and just last month, we were paying about $3.30.

Crude oil tends to drop nearly 30% from late September into early winter, with gasoline prices following after, Gross said.

Experts say the relief at the pump is being helped by low overall gas demand combined with increases in domestic gasoline stock.

Cheaper gas is welcome news to any driver, but Georgians may be more likely to celebrate after the state resumed collecting its fuel tax late last month. In an effort to return some of the state’s surplus to residents, Gov. Brian Kemp suspended the 31.2-cent per gallon tax in September.

Kemp used a novel approach, declaring a state of emergency over inflation, allowing him to place the blame for gas prices on President Joe Biden.

Within Georgia, western Quitman County is the best place to fill up — the stations there only want $2.71 a gallon there on average — but stay away from Crawford County in the center of the state. They’ll charge you $3.24 for the same gallon there.

This story comes to GPB through a reporting partnership with Georgia Recorder.