According to the weekly report from AAA, Gas prices in Georgia have increased ahead of Labor Day, with an average price of $3.60 per gallon for regular unleaded gasoline. 

This is 3 cents higher than a week ago, 5 cents lower than a month ago.

However, the current average is still lower than the price of $3.78 per gallon paid for Labor Day last year.

“It appears that overall gasoline demands this summer failed to match previous years, with consumption getting little “lift” from vacation travel this summer despite retail gasoline prices being below last year’s,” said Montrae Waiters, AAA-The Auto Club Group spokeswoman. “There is a lot of speculation as to why, but no one seems to know the exact cause.”

Gasoline prices in Cobb County

The price of a gallon of regular unleaded in Cobb County is $3.661,  roughly 6 cents more than  the statewide average.

It is always possible to find lower gas prices than the average by comparison shopping or using tools like http://gasbuddy.com.

What are the national trends?

AAA’s weekly report stated the following about national gas and oil trends:

“Since last Monday, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline has held steady at $3.81 (subject to change overnight). 

“While damage assessments are still being made in the wake of Hurricane Idalia, pump prices remained in neutral. 

“According to data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand increased slightly from 8.91 to 9.07 million barrels a day last week. 

“Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks took a slight step back to 217.4 million barrels. Although demand has increased, fluctuating oil prices have limited pump price increases.”

How does AAA determine gas prices?

According to AAA:

“AAA updates fuel price averages daily at www.GasPrices.AAA.com. Every day up to 130,000 stations are surveyed based on credit card swipes and direct feeds in cooperation with the Oil Price Information Service (OPIS) and Wright Express for unmatched statistical reliability. 

“All average retail prices in this report are for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline.”