LOS ANGELES (KTLA) — It’s still unclear if it was a mistake or a promotion, but gas for 45 cents per gallon was available to customers at a Southern California ARCO gas station.
Video showed cars lined up for blocks waiting to get to the station located in Whittier, NewsNation affiliate KTLA reports.
Michael Arteaga shared an image of the pump after filling up with more than 15 gallons of gas. The total price was $7.20.
At one point, police even showed up to find out what the long line of cars was all about.
California, thanks in part to state taxes, has the most expensive gas in the nation, according to GasBuddy, with an average price Tuesday of $4.70.
In October, a photo of the $7.59-per-gallon price for gas at a fuel station in the isolated community of Gorda made national headlines. As the lone oasis for drivers running on empty along that stretch of the Big Sur coastline, the gas station isn’t representative of fuel trends across the state, however, as former President Donald Trump has suggested.
With Thanksgiving travel expected to reach near pre-pandemic levels this year, it’s possible that Tuesday’s rush on the Whittier gas station was even greater as drivers tanked up in preparation for the holiday.
KTLA reached out to see if the price was a mistake, promotion or something else. As of publishing time, there was no word from the ARCO station’s management.