Cheap Gas Could Fuel Lots of Road Tripping This Summer

With gasoline in the U.S. expected to be cheaper than it has been in the last 12 years all summer long—just over $2 a gallon—more Americans are expected to get behind the wheel, resulting in a record-high demand forecast for gas this summer.

The international oil glut has sent petroleum prices tumbling from their peak above $100 a barrel in 2014, which has, in turn, sent gas prices in a tail spin. Drivers this summer will pay 59 cents per gallon less than just one year ago, and $1.55 less than in 2014, Bloomberg reports. AAAA projects the savings for June, July and August to total $70 per licensed driver. The Energy Information Agency expects each American household to save $350 on gasoline over last year.

"There’s no question gasoline prices will be lower than in prior summers," said John Kilduff of energy hedge fund Again Capital LLC. "The low price of the primary input, which is crude oil, is translating into a lower gasoline price. You’ve got the global oil glut to thank for reduced gasoline prices.”

The EIA expects gas prices from April to September to average $2.04 in the U.S., lower than any year since 2004, the last time gas cost less than $2 a gallon.