Fill 'er up! Gas drops below $3 per gallon

Looking for a bright spot in the collapse of America's economy? Here's a tiny one: The price of a gallon of regular gas on Wednesday dropped to below $3 at a handful of stations in the region.

As of 3:15 p.m., the lowest price in The Gazette's online Gas Watch feature was $2.89 at the Valero gas station at 3464 Research Parkway.

Two other stations surveyed were offering a gallon of regular gas for $2.96, and seven others were at $2.99 a gallon. For the location of those stations, go to gazette.com and click on the Gas Watch feature under the Business banner.

The last time a gallon of regular gas was below $3 in Colorado was Aug. 6, 2007, when gas averaged $2.97, according to the American Automobile Association.

Before motorists get a warm and fuzzy feeling about a few stations offering sub-$3-gallon gas, consider:

• The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded in the Colorado Springs area as of Wednesday was $3.15, according to AAA.

• The price for a gallon of regular unleaded five years ago was $1.48.