Gas prices good news for Thanksgiving drivers

Just in time for Thanksgiving travel, gas prices are dipping across the Chicago area.

Average gas prices in the Chicago area have fallen 4.2 cents per gallon in the past week to an average of $3.66 per gallon, reports ChicagoGasPrices.com. Gas prices in many suburbs have dropped even below that.

Nationally, gas prices have fallen 3.2 cents per gallon to $3.43, according to the website.

That's good news, with more Americans expecting to hit the road than in past years, according to AAA. About 43.6 million Americans will travel at least 50 miles from home over the holiday, up 0.7 percent from last year, AAA reports. That's still 26 percent below the peak in 2005 and 14 percent below 2007.

Air travel is expected to decline.

The travel web site Travelocity.com puts the average round-trip cost of air travel in the U.S. this Thanksgiving at $386, up 9 percent from last year.

While gas prices are dropping, the national average will still come close to breaking a record for the highest national average for

Thanksgiving, said Patrick DeHaan, of ChicagoGasPrices.com.