March usually means the arrival of Spring Break, but it could also herald a momentary break from those continually rising gas prices, according to the latest gas price survey from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. For the first time in several weeks, the average per-gallon cost of a gallon of gas actually declined, although there was no such relief in the Rocky Mountain states or the U.S. West Coast.
Still, the week-over-week dip in fuel costs could not have come at a better time for many living along the Eastern seaboard and in the Midwestern states, where blasts of cold air have pushed up energy consumption. The average price for a gallon of gas dropped by about 2 ½-cents per gallon, but prices fell by nearly twice that rate on the Gulf Coast and Lower Atlantic States.
The relief was extended to truckers and fleet drivers, too, as diesel fuel prcies dropped about 3¢ per gallon during the past week. In an extra line of good news, the price declines affected all regions of the United States, unlike regular petroleum prices.