Road trip

Prepare yourself for a wide variety of prices at the pump this Memorial Day weekend.

Gasoline prices range from an average $3.28 per gallon in Davenport to $4.29 in Chicago, according to a May 16 survey. Although a gallon of gas is about 20 cents cheaper this year, AAA auto club reports that motorists may feel prices are still too high.

Many of those surveyed remain concerned about the economy. That's why, AAA said, any increase in holiday weekend travel will be limited to 1.2 percent.

About 30.7 million Americans plan to drive to their destinations, up from 30.3 million who drove last year, according to AAA. That's far below the 37.3 million who traveled by car over the 2005 Memorial Day weekend.

The average trip will be 642 miles this Memorial Day, compared with 792 miles on the same weekend in 2011, AAA reports. Half of those surveyed said they plan to travel less than 400 miles.

“Travel is about security,” said John Larson, vice president for IHS Global Insight, a firm that analyzed the AAA Memorial Day travel forecast. “If you feel less secure about your future, you may be less willing to take this trip.”

If you are planning to travel beyond Illinois, you might want to fill your tank in Davenport. The average price of a gallon of gasoline in Illinois is $3.88, according to AAA. The farther north you travel toward the Indianapolis 500, and the price will climb above $4 a gallon.

Conversely, if you're thinking about checking out Worlds of Fun and Oceans of Fun in Kansas City, Mo., you will be pleasantly surprised to fill up at $3.27 per gallon for your return trip, according to GasBuddy.com. That's slightly better than Des Moines, where the average price is $3.35 per gallon.

If you're considering a trip to St. Louis to watch the Cardinals play the Phillies on Friday, Saturday or Sunday, prepare to shell out $3.57 per gallon for the trip back to the Corridor. For a trip to the Wisconsin Dells, expect to pay $3.39 per gallon in Dubuque, $3.56 in Platteville, Wis., and $3.63 in Madison, Wis.

There are some ways to trim the cost of a holiday journey.

If you have a Sam's Club membership, you can knock 3 cents per gallon off your fuel purchase. The same discount applies if you load a Walmart gift card with cash and use it at Murphy Oil stations.

Predictions of a $4 or $5 per-gallon average price for gasoline this summer have evaporated as crude oil prices have tumbled. The June contract for benchmark U.S. sweet, light crude dropped $1.17 to $92.81 per barrel May 16 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after averaging $102.95 in the first quarter.

Greece's forthcoming election, Spain's banking crisis, concerns about U.S. and China economic growth, and questions about the future of the eurozone have been dragging down the price of crude. That has translated into lower prices at the pump, with the average U.S. retail price dropping 21 cents a gallon to $3.73. It had hit a 2012 peak of $3.94 on April 6.

Memorial Day marks the traditional beginning of the summer travel season and the peak period for gasoline use. AAA said Memorial Day weekend travel tends to be more robust when the holiday falls later in the month.