BY THE NUMBERS$3.27 — Average price of a gallon of regular gas in Chattanooga Thursday$3.45 — Average nationwide price of a gallon of regular gas on Thursday$3.45 — Average price of a gallon of regular gas in Chattanooga a month ago, or 18 cents per gallon more than the current price.$2.53 — Average price of a gallon of regular gas in Chattanooga a year ago, or 75 cents less than the current price$3.98 — Average peak price of regular gas reached in price peak.Source: AAA Fuel Gauge Survey
Chattanooga motorists are paying 18 cents a gallon less for gas than they did a month ago in one hopeful sign from the weakening economy. But fuel prices are still 75 cents above a year ago, when regular gas cost an average of $2.52 a gallon.
“I hope it goes down more,” mused East Ridge resident Barbara Sitten.
Her thirsty Ford Explorer burns through gas pretty quickly, she explained, but she can’t afford a new fuel-effecient vehicle.
“I’m a senior citizen on a fixed income,” Sitten noted wearily as the pump’s digital display shot past $50 while filling up her SUV on Thursday.