LAYTON -- Clearfield resident Bill Lance filled up his Chevy SUV at a local gas station and was excited to see how low prices had fallen.
Per-gallon prices are more than 25 cents lower than they were a month ago, and they are expected to keep diving.
According to AAA, every Utah metro area tracked by the agency saw double-digit decreases at the pump during the last month. All but one of those decreases was more than 23 cents.
"I just feel like paying for gas is the last thing I want to worry about," Lance said. "You've got all kinds of other bills to pay, it would be nice if we caught a little break when it comes to gas."
With a current average price of $3.14 for a gallon of regular gasoline, Utah is tied with Kansas for the ninth-cheapest price in the country.
The current price is a decrease of 28 cents since the AAA report from early November, but it's also 33 cents higher than it was a year ago.
The Ogden-Clearfield urban area saw average prices drop from $3.31 to $3.03 in the past month.
The national average price of $3.27 is down 14 cents from last month, but 29 cents higher than the national price a year ago of $2.98.
AAA Utah spokesman Matt Skryja said prices will likely continue to inch downward.
"Gas prices are so volatile that they can be hard to predict," he said. "But we're trending downward. In the short term, we think prices will continue to go down."
Skryja said oil investors have cut back on buying during the past month, which helps keep prices down.
Although the average gas price in much of the state is above $3, there are many locations across the Top of Utah where prices have dipped below the $3 mark.
The Layton Conoco Station at 1724 W. Antelope Drive was one of those stations, with regular unleaded gasoline coming in at $2.98 per gallon.
Store manager Malynda Allred said the last time prices were under $3 was in February.
"It's been almost a year since we've had prices this low," she said. "And it's really only been in the past few weeks that we've really seen (prices) go down quite a bit."
Allred said prices at her store have fallen about 30 cents in a little more than a month.
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