While the bulk of the United States is self-distancing by staying home as much as possible because of the coronavirus, right now is one of the most affordable times to ride a motorcycle or drive a car, as the average price for a gallon of gasoline continues to drop at a noticeable rate.
This is because on average, a gallon of gasoline costs the least amount of money it ever has in the past four years, and the expectation for April is that gas prices could drop to $1.75/gallon on average across the country.
When you drill down to individual states, the cost of gasoline gets even more interesting. Hawaii and California still have gas at over $3/gallon, but for two-thirds of the country, gas will cost you $1.99/gallon or less. The cheapest gas on average right now is in Oklahome, at $1.55/gallon.
But, some prices are even lower than that. “In the last week, 99¢ prices have shown up at various times in Kentucky, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Wisconsin and Missouri and more could join in the days and weeks ahead,” says gas-tracking website GasBuddy.
The cause of the falling gas prices is that the cost of crude oil is in sharp decline right now. Not only are fewer cars on the road around the world, but cruise ship are in docks, flights are being canceled, and manufacturing businesses closed or at reduced capacities.
Adding to the complexity, Saudi Arabia and Russia are currently in a power struggle to control the crude oil market, which has seen the barrel price of crude oil go below $20.
It is a cruel irony that the best opportunity to ride right now might be during worst timing possible.
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