How to fill up before feasting, with lowest gas prices in area as Thanksgiving nears
Gasoline prices are unlikely to make most people's list of Thanksgiving blessings this year, especially with the 12 cent tax increase at the pumps earlier this month.
Nearly 51 million Americans — including more than 6 million Californians — will journey 50 miles or more away from home this Thanksgiving, according to AAA, and 89 percent of them will be on the roads. The number of travelers is up 3.3 percent from last year and is the highest since 2005.
Two of the nation's top 10 Thanksgiving weekend travel destinations, by the way, are in the Golden State: Anaheim and San Francisco, AAA says.
The average price per gallon for regular gas in Modesto on Thursday morning was $3.04, according to Modestogasprices.com, which is a site of the national gas price checker Gasbuddy.com. That's well below the average price statewide, which was $3.23.
But this time last year, the average price in Modesto was just $2.47 a gallon. Now, even the lowest price around doesn't come close.
Here, as of Thursday morning, are the top 15 stations in the metropolitan Modesto area with the lowest price per gallon of regular gas:
1. $2.75, Modesto Truck Plaza, 1201 S. Seventh St.
2. $2.77, Costco, 3801 Pelandale Ave, Modesto
3. $2.77, Costco, 2955 N. Tegner Road, Turlock
4. $2.77, Arco, 2219 Lander Ave., Turlock
5. $2.77, Arco, 1801 Lander Ave., Turlock
6. $2.77, Gemco, 1022 S. Frontage Road, Ripon
7. $2.77, Arco, 3936 Mitchell Road, Ceres
8. $2.78, Bill's Sport & Bait Shop, 2001 Crows Landing Road, Modesto
9. $2.79, Quik Stop, 4272 Main St., Denair
10. $2.79, Quik Stop, 2406 W. Monte Vista Ave., Turlock
11. $2.79, Empire Liquor, 5018 Yosemite Blvd., Empire
12. $2.79, Quik Stop 1260 Geer Road, Turlock
13. $2.79, Arco, 2507 N. Ninth St., Ceres
14. $2.79, Arco, 210 N. Golden State Blvd., Turlock
15. $2.81, Safeway, 3051 Countryside Drive, Turlock
This story was originally published November 16, 2017 at 12:19 PM with the headline "How to fill up before feasting, with lowest gas prices in area as Thanksgiving nears."