Tuesday marked a milestone in U.S. history that the majority of Americans pay for daily – 1,000 consecutive days at more than $3 a gallon gas.

The current streak began Dec. 23, 2010.

According to AAA, the national average is expected to remain as high for another thousand days or more excluding a recession.

“There is a strong possibility that prices will average more than $3 per gallon the national level over the next couple of years,” said AAA Alabama spokesman Clay Ingram.

Monday’s national average was $3.52 per gallon.

Locally, gas prices average $3.29 per gallon in Luverne and in Brantley, according to AAA.

And while gas prices may be stretching the wallet, locally prices are the down 4 cents from last week; down 9 cents from last month; down 23 cents from six months ago; and 31 cents from a year ago.

On the state level, the average price was $3.27 per gallon.

Alabama’s higher prices are behind the national average and the state will hit 1,000 consecutive days on Oct. 22.

“There is a always a possibility that it will drop and this is the time of year when we often see our pump prices drop,” Ingram said. “There is also a good chance that we could see prices dip below $3 per gallon in Alabama in the coming months.”

Ingram encouraged price shopping, where consumers practice purchasing gas at the cheapest retailer.

“Our efforts with price shopping will play a major role in whether or not we see prices drop below that point,” he said.