*A Photo Essay: How Low Can Gas Go? $1.48!

In 2014, I did a lot of driving in White Lightning, my Prius that gets great gas mileage—hovering around 48 mpg. Often I record the amount and price of gas in my Quicken accounting system, just for fun. Here are some prices I’ve paid for unleaded in different places over the year:

• $3.48* 1/9/14* California

• $3.10* 2/17/14* New Mexico

• $3.23* 3/5/14* New Mexico

• $3.85* 4/27/14* Colorado

• $4.06* 4/29/14* Oregon

• $3.90* 5/30/14* Oregon

• $3.93* 6/17/14* Oregon

• $3.79* 7/28/14* California

• $3.50* 8/25/14* California

• $3.34* 9/30/14* California

• $3.14* 10/1/14* Arizona

• $2.86* 10/18/14* New Mexico

• $2.64* 11/4/14* New Mexico

• $2.70* 12/5/14* Colorado

• $2.46* 12/27/14* California

Then in late December, driving from California to New Mexico, I just had to start taking pictures:

Gas $1.99 along I-10 in Arizona on Dec. 27, 2014

Gas $1.99 near Acoma, New Mexico, on Dec. 28, 2014.

Gas $1.79 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on Jan. 5, 2015.

Gas $1.59 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on Jan. 12, 2015.

Gas $1.57 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on Jan. 12, 2015.

Gas $1.48 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on Jan. 14, 2015.

I love these low prices, though I don’t understand why they’re dropping so dramatically. You know, when I bought my first car, sometimes gas was $.19 a gallon.  And prices could go to $.15 when there was a gas war on and stations across the street from one another vied for business. That was in Kansas. The good ole’ days, huh?