U.S. Gas Price Average Dips Below $2.50 a Gallon

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Average gas prices dipped below $2.50 a gallon nationwide for the first time in five years. According to AAA, the national average gas price was $2.48 per gallon on Thursday, the cheapest average price since Oct. 10, 2009.

Although the current prices are already enough for consumers to applaud, more holiday cheer could be on the way. AAA expects the national average price of gas to drop even more, to between $2.25 and $2.40 a gallon, before the calendar changes to 2015.

Gas prices have fallen 84 days in a row for a total of 87 cents per gallon, representing the second-longest consecutive streak on record, revealed AAA. Gas prices have dropped $1.22 per gallon since reaching a 2014 average high of $3.70 per gallon on April 28.

AAA estimates that Americans are saving more than $425 million per day on gasoline compared to the higher prices earlier this year. Consumers are saving $15 to $35 per trip to the gas station. 

The cheapest state averages in the country are Missouri ($2.15), Oklahoma ($2.21), Texas ($2.26), Mississippi ($2.28) and South Carolina ($2.30). The cheapest metro area in the country is Springfield, Mo., at $2.01 per gallon.

As CSNews Online previously reported, a record 98.6 million Americans are expected to travel 50 miles or more from their homes during the year-end holiday season, a 4-percent increase year over year. The holiday period is defined as Dec. 23 to Jan. 4.