According to oregongasprices.com, McMinnville has some of the most expensive gas in Oregon. That apparently comes as no surprise to residents, as a number of them have called, written or e-mailed the News-Register to complain about it.

Admittedly, gas is substantially cheaper now than it was last summer. Regular ranged from $2.56 to $2.59 a gallon Monday, compared to more than $4 a gallon at its summer high point.

But at the ARCO in Dundee, a gallon of regular cost $2.23 Monday. It was going for $2.28 to $2.33 in Newberg and $2.08 to $2.29 in Salem.

How much difference would that make anyway?

Ten gallons could run as little as $20.80 in Salem, compared to as much as $25.90 in McMinnville. That's a difference of more than $5 on 10 gallons or more than $10 on 20 gallons.

Of course, if you drove all the way to Salem and back to fill your tank, you'd be pumping your savings out the tailpipe along the way.

It's the wide variation in prices at locations just miles apart - or, in some case, just blocks apart - that fuels motorists' ire. Prices vary even among stations carrying the same brand, which motorists find hard to understand.

AAA isn't willing to venture an explanation for the variations, but is for the overall decline in prices.

It says sticker shock from last summer's $4 gas drove motorists to embrace conservation measures. That drove demand down, and reduced demand sent prices down, it says.

Simply put, Americans aren't driving as much. And when they do take to the roads, they are trying to do it in more energy-efficient vehicles.

According to AAA, October's pre-election drop in gas prices was the steepest on record. The first week in November saw the average price of regular ranging from $2.07 in Oklahoma to $3.44 in Alaska, and even the $3.44 represented a bargain.