Lower Prices, More Travelers for 4th of July Weekend

Prices at the pump are down nationwide, but look especially good here at home.

In the Baltimore metropolitan area, the average price of a gallon of regular unleaded fell to $3.33 on Sunday, representing a 5-cent drop from a week ago and a 29-cent decrease over last year.

"Like" Parkville-Overlea Patch on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and receive daily updates through our newsletters.

The national average for a gallon of regular unleaded fuel was $3.42 a gallon on Sunday—down 9 cents from a week ago and 18 cents cheaper than a year ago, according to the latest AAA survey.

According to a AAA news release, the average cost to fill up nationally has dropped 49 cents since prices peaked in at $3.94 in early April and are currently 69 cents below the all-time record high of $4.11 set in July 2008.

Prices at the pump are continuing to follow the price of crude oil, now in a backslide having fallen to under $80 per barrel on Friday, AAA reported.

Lower gas prices are expected to have a positive impact on the number of people who choose to travel during the upcoming holiday weekend—AAA reports that 35.5 million Americans are expected to travel by car for Independence Day, a 4 percent increase over last year.

Here are some of the cheapest gas prices in the Parkville-Overlea area, according to Patch's gas price tracker and MarylandGasPrices.com: