Idaho gas prices drop another 2 cents

COEUR d'ALENE — Despite a prolonged hurricane season and increasing demand for fuel nationwide, Idaho gas prices dropped 2 cents this week, while the U.S. average held steady.

But as states ease the restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic, more drivers are hitting the road. According to AAA, overall fuel demand is now just 6 percent less than it was a year ago.

“Right now, you have forces of supply and demand that are balancing the scales on the national level,” said Matthew Conde, spokesman for AAA Idaho. “On one hand, the arrival of Hurricane Delta led to the shutdown of 91 percent of crude oil production in the Gulf of Mexico, which would normally cause gas prices to temporarily spike. But due to the pandemic, the demand for fuel is also down, and that’s taken some of the pressure off the reduced supply.”

In a normal year, gas prices tend to steadily drop after Labor Day before briefly leveling off sometime during the holiday season. But pent-up demand could lead to pockets of elevated travel activity in some parts of the country, and corresponding jumps in pump prices.

The current average price for regular in Idaho is $2.37, which is 9 cents less than a month ago, and 41 cents less than a year ago. While gas prices dropped 3 cents in Boise this week, drivers in other parts of the Gem State saved even more, including Coeur d’Alene, Lewiston, and Twin Falls, where gas prices dropped by a nickel. Drivers in Idaho Falls are paying the same as a week ago to fill up, while Pocatello prices have dropped four cents.

In Kootenai County, a gallon of unleaded gas was going for anywhere around the range $2.15 to $2.35.