NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - Despite predictions of rising demand, it appears high prices are curbing American's ravenous appetite for gasoline.

Last month gas use fell 0.6 percent compared with the period last year, according to figures from the American Petroleum Institute.

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The reason to people at API seemed pretty clear.

"Really, sharply higher retail prices seem to be having an effect," said Rayola Dougher, manager of energy market issues at API.

The average price of a gallon of regular gas, at $2.83 a gallon, is 27 percent more expensive than last year, according to the motorist organization AAA.

A report in USA Today said even a small reduction in gas use could have a big effect at the pump.

"If everyone decided to drive 3 percent less the next 30 days, prices would crash," Tom Kloza, a senior analyst at the Oil Price Information Service, told the paper.

Although Kloza doesn't think American's could get it together enough for that to happen, the government said recently it expects gas prices to stabilize or even decline slightly as more gasoline makes it to market, USA Today said.

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